Columbia  Winiotviitv 

intl)eCitj>oti9etogorfe 


LIBRARY 


GIVEN  BY 


J.   Enrique  Z.anetti 


Sister  Saint  Rita  of  Cascia 


Life  of 

Sister  St.  Rita 
of  Cascia 

of  the 

Order  of  St.  Augustine.     Advocate  of  the   Impossible. 
Model  of  maidens,  wives,  mothers,  widows  and  nuns. 


Translated  by  the 

Rev.  Dan  J.  Murphy,  O.  S.  A. 

From  the  Spanish  of 
Rev.  Joseph  Sicardo,  O.  S.  A. 


cnjCAno 
1).  E.  IlAiisi.N  ^  Sons 

PUBLISHERS 


JUN  3     1940 


Cum  Permissu  Superiorum 

N.  J.  MURPHY,  O.  S.  A., 

Provincial 

NIHIL  OBSTAT 

J.  F.  GREEN,  O.  S.  A., 

Censor  Libr. 


IMPRIMATUR 

GEORGE  W.  MUNDELEIN,  D.  D., 

Archbishop,  Chicago. 


Copyright,  1916,  by 
D.  B.  Hansen  &  Sons 


»w   <         »    .     .. 


*    ■*  '  *       ..•  I  .     .       '  •         ■       •        .    .  . 

>     •      •  • 


<■  1     ,  •      I 


To  the 
Very  Rev.  J.  F.  Green,  O.  S.  A., 
whose  pious  and  untiring  zeal  has 
done  so  much  to  spread  devotion 
to  St.  Rita,  O.  S.  A.,  of  Cascia,  this 
volume  is  affectionately  dedicated 

By  the  Translator. 


In  compliance  with  the  decree  of 
Urban  VIIL,  we  hereby  assert 
that  we  do  not  intend  to  attach  to 
the  circumstances  narrated  in  this 
Life  any  significance  other  than  that 
belonging  to  historical  facts. 

Dan  J.  Murphy,  O.  S.  A. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER 

I. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

V. 


VI. 

VII. 
VIII. 

IX. 

X. 

XI. 
XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 

XVI. 

XVII. 


PAGE 

Preface   9 

Umbria,  C ascia  and  Its  Greatness 18 

The  Birthplace  and  Parents  of  St.  Rita 18 

St.   Rita's  Birth 23 

The  Early  Years  of  St.  Rita 27 

St.  Rita  Begins  to  Lead  a  Life  of  Retirement, 
and  Desires  Ardently  to  Consecrate  Her 

Virginity  to  God 31 

St.  Rita  Sacrifices  Her  Will  on  the  Altar  of 
Obedience    and    Consents    to    Enter    the 

Marriage  State  36 

St.  Rita's  Marriage  40 

St.  Rita,  by  Her  Humility  and  Patience,  Con- 
verts Her  Cruel  Husband 44 

God    Blesses   the    Marriage    of    St.    Rita    With 

Two  Beautiful  Children 48 

The  Virtues  That  St.   Rita  Practiced   During 

Her  Married  Life 52 

Death  of  Ferdinando — Grief  of  St.  Rita .57 

St.  Rita  Makes  a  Sacrifice  of  the  Lives  of  Her 

Two  Sons  to  God 61 

The   Penitential   Life   of   St.   Rita  After   the 

Death  of  Her  Sons 64 

St.   Rita  Applies  for  Admission   into  the  Con- 
vent.    Her  Request  is  Denied 67 

St.  Rita  Enters  the  Maddalena  Convent  in  a 

Miraculous  Manner    71 

St.  Rita     Distributes     Her     Tkmporai,     Goods 
Among  the  Poor  and  Receives  the  Auous- 

TiNiAN  Habit 76 

St.  Rita  Makes  Her  Solemn  Profession,     She  is 

Favored  with  a  Mysterious  Vision 81 

(v) 


Contents  (Continued) 


CHAPTER 
XVIII. 
XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 

XXIII. 

XXIV. 

XXV. 
XXVI. 

XXVII. 
XXVIII. 

XXIX. 

XXX. 

XXXI. 

XXXII. 
XXXIII. 

XXXIV. 

XXXV. 

XXXVI. 

XXXVII. 


PAGE 

How  St.  Rita  Observed  the  Vow  of  Obedience    84 

The   Evangelical   Poverty   St.   Rita   Professed 

and  Practiced 89 

The  Angelical  Purity  with  which  St.  Rita  Ob- 
served THE  Vow  of  Chastity 9S 

Mortifications    Practiced    by    St.    Rita    After 

She  Became  a  Nun 97 

St.  Rita's  Admirable  Progress  in  Virtue  Dur- 
ing Her  Religious  Li^e 101 

St.  Rita's   Love   for   Prayer.     The   Wonderful 

Efficacy  of  Her  Prayers 106 

St.  Rita,  Praying  Before  a  Crucifix,  Receives 

A  Miraculous  Wound  on  the  Forehead 111 

St.  Rita's  Journey  to  Rome  116 

St.  Rita's  Illness  and  the  Signs  that  Attested 

Her  Sanctity 122 

St.  Rita's  Happy  Death 127 

Singular  Events  that  Took  Place  Immediately 

After  the  Death  of  St.  Rita 132 

The  Worship  with  which  St.  Rita  was  Vener- 
ated After  Her  Death 137 

The  Privileges  which  the  Body  and  Relics  of 

St.   Rita  Enjoy 140 

Miracles    that    God    Wrought    Through    the 

Intercession  of  St.  Rita  After  Her  Death  145 

The  Solemn  Beatification  of  St.  Rita 152 

Festivities  Held  at  Rome  and  Cascia  in  Honor 

of  the  Solemn  Beatification  of  St.  Rita-.  156 

Miracles    Wrought    by    St.    Rita    After    Her 

Beatification 161 

The  Rapid  Spread  of  Devotion  to  St.  Rita 165 

The  Solemn  Canonization  of  St.  Rita 169 

Conclusion 175 


(vi) 


PREFACE 

The  "Lives  of  the  Saints''  are  only  a  part,  but  a 
precious  part  of  the  Library  of  triumphant  Christianity. 
The  catalogue  of  the  "Lives  of  the  Saints"  is  a  long  and 
holy  one,  so  holy,  indeed,  that  it  is  called  a  litany,  and 
is  used  as  one  of  the  public  prayers  of  the  Catholic 
Church.  On  the  shelves  of  this  library  are  found  boolcs 
whose  pages  relate  not  only  the  lives  of  Jesus  Christ, 
the  King  of  Saints,  and  of  Mary,  the  Mother  of  Jesus, 
the  Queen  of  Saints,  but  also  the  story  of  those  pious 
and  holy  men  and  women  whose  lives  were  a  signal  proof 
that  "God  is  wonderful  in  His  saints."  The  Church  is 
a  faithful  custodian  of  the  "Lives  of  the  Saints,"  of  those 
books  which  contain  the  wonderful  and  glorious  deeds 
of  her  children  who  have  lived  and  died  in  the  odor  of 
sanctity.  And  she  looks  on  every  "Life  of  a  Saint"  as 
a  guide  book  pointing  out  the  way  to  heaven  to  all 
Christians  who  are  only  travelers  on  the  way  to  their 
true  home.  After  the  Catechism  there  is  no  book  more 
precious  to  the  eyes  of  Mother  Church  than  a  "Life  of 
a  Saint."  Every  age  of  the  Church  has  had  its  illus- 
trious saint  or  saints,  and  the  study  of  the  life  of  any 
saint  will  reveal  the  providence  of  God  in  the  govern- 
ment of  the  world,  and  especially  the  divine  economy 
with  regard  to  the  children  of  Ilis  Church.  Not  only 
are  the  saints,  while  living  on  earth,  the  glory  and  orna- 
ments of  their  birth-lands,  but  after  death  their  real 

9 


10  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

characters  become  better  known,  and  Mother  Church 
bestows  upon  them  the  highest  honors  within  her  power, 
and,  at  her  command,  an  entire  world  gives  them  their 
due  worship  and  veneration.  It  is  the  dearest  wish  of 
Mother  Church  that  her  children  should  frequently  read 
the  hves  of  the  saints;  by  so  doing  they  gradually  be- 
come acquainted  with  a  select  society  to  which,  in  a  great 
measure,  they  will  be  forced  to  raise  the  standard  of 
their  daily  hves.  Our  Holy  Father  St.  Augustine  is  a 
striking  example  of  what  the  reading  of  the  hves  of  the 
saints  may  do.  A  friend  of  his,  Alipius  by  name,  gave 
him  the  life  of  St.  Anthony  the  Abbot.  Augustine 
read  it,  and  was  so  extremely  affected  by  what  he  read, 
that  it  was  one  main  cause  of  his  conversion.  Looking 
down  the  long  calendar  of  saints,  glancing  carefully  over 
the  Church's  long  honor-hst  of  men  and  women,  whose 
names  were  tahsmanic  in  their  days,  we  find  no  name 
crowned  with  a  greater  halo  of  glory  and  veneration, 
than  that  of  Sister  St.  Rita,  the  humble  Augustinian 
nun  of  Cascia,  now  worshiped  and  venerated  under  the 
singular  title  of  the  Sairit  of  the  Impossible,  It  is  more 
than  450  years  since  St.  Rita  departed  this  life  to  be 
united  forever  to  her  Lord  and  spouse  Jesus  Christ, 
and  yet  her  name  is  still  held  in  benediction,  not  only 
among  the  faithful  of  Italy,  her  native  country,  but  also 
among  the  faithful  of  the  rest  of  Europe,  who  vie  with 
the  people  of  South  and  North  America,  in  honoring 
and  venerating  our  illustrious  Saint.  Among  the  many 
magnificent  "Lives  of  St.  Rita"  written  by  the  Italian 
and  Spanish  Augustimans,  we  prefer  that  written  by 
our  brother  Religious,  Father  Joseph  Sicardo.  As  his 
book  has  had  a  large  propaganda  in  Spain,  the  PhiUp- 
pine  Islands  and  in  Spanish  America,  we  have  hopes 


Preface  11 

that  the  same  book,  garbed  in  an  English  dress,  will 
help  to  keep  alive  that  fire  of  devotion  which  now  burns 
in  the  hearts  of  so  many  clients  of  Sister  St.  Rita  in 
North  America.  That  our  translation  of  Father  Sicar- 
do's  "Life  of  St.  Rita"  may  have  the  result  of  further 
increasing  not  only  the  veneration,  but  also  the  number 
of  the  clients  of  our  Sister  St.  Rita  is  our  only  wish  and 
ambition. 

Dan  J.  Murphy,  O.  S.  A. 
St.  Rita's  Monastery 
Chicago,  111. 

Feast  of  St.  Agatha,  1916. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Umbria,  Cascia  and  Its  Greatness 

^^F  YOU  TAKE  a  glance  at  the  map  of  Italy,  you 
^1  will  observe  that  the  province  of  Umbria  is  set, 
^^  like  a  gem,  in  the  centre  of  the  Itahan  peninsula, 
which  has  the  appearance  of  an  elongated  boot  dipping 
down  to  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 

The  capital  of  Umbria  is  Perugia,  a  remarkably 
beautiful  city,  situated  on  a  hill  on  the  right  of  the  Tiber. 
Among  its  many  stately  and  majestic  edifices,  Perugia 
possesses  a  magnificent  cathedral,  built  in  the  14th  cen- 
tury, that  contains  paintings  by  Barroccio,  Manni,  and 
Signorelli.  Attached  to  the  cathedral  is  a  valuable 
library,  rich  in  works  and  manuscripts,  among  which  is 
a  codex  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  Luke,  of  the  6th  century. 

The  inhabitants  of  Umbria  are  descendants  of  a  long 
line  of  ancient  and  honorable  ancestors.  They  are  a 
C^d-f earing  and  God-loving  people,  and  their  proudest 
boast  is  that  they  have  preserved  the  faith  "once  given 
to  the  saints." 

Travelers  and  pilgrims,  who  have  visited  the  prov- 
ince of  Umbria,  are  most  emphatic  and  enthusiastic  in 
praise  of  this  picturesque  wonder-land,  whose  matchless 
blue  skies  and  delightful  climate,  its  rugged  hills  and 
smiling  valleys,  its  fertile  soil  and  its  abundance  of 
luscious  fruits,  are  sufficient  proofs  that  bountiful  nature 

13 


14  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

has  bestowed,  with  lavish  hands,  its  choicest  gifts  on 
this  garden  spot  of  the  Itahan  peninsula,  whose  native 
charms  are  the  pride  and  boast  of  an  admiring  world. 
Truly  may  it  be  said  of  Umbria:  "Beauty's  home  is 
surely  there." 

If  we  pass  from  the  order  of  nature  to  the  order  of 
grace,  Umbria  becomes  a  shrine,  so  to  speak,  or  in  other 
words,  a  holy  land,  because  it  is  the  birthland  of  many 
illustrious  saints,  whose  names  are  the  ornaments  of 
Italy  and  the  glory  and  honor  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

What  land,  under  heaven's  dome,  can  lay  claim  to 
a  galaxy  of  saints  like  St.  Benedict,  St.  Francis  and  St. 
Clare,  both  of  Assisi  ?  Time  has  not  decreased  the  holy 
fame  of  these  saints;  on  the  contrary,  time  has  aug- 
mented the  glory  and  veneration  of  Saints  Benedict, 
Francis  and  Clare.  Their  shrines  are  visited  yearly  by 
numerous  travelers  and  pilgrims  who  are  led,  not  by 
curiosity,  but  by  an  ardent  faith,  to  go  and  visit  the 
shrines  of  those  holy  persons,  who,  while  on  earth,  were 
faithful  servants  of  God. 

However,  the  religious  glory  and  fame  of  Umbria 
do  not  rest  alone  on  the  trinity  of  Saints  mentioned 
above.  This  blessed  province  is  the  happy  mother  of, 
at  least,  a  dozen  saints.  The  Order  of  St.  Augustine 
numbers  in  its  long  calendar  of  saints,  eight,  who  claim 
Umbria  as  their  birthplace,  among  whom  must  be 
specially  mentioned:  Sister  St.  Clare  of  Montefalco 
and  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia,  called  by  Leo  XIII,  of 
happy  memory,  ^^La  perla  preziosa  de  la  Umbria^ — 
"Umbria 8  predous  pearl" 

About  seventy-five  miles  from  Rome,  in  the  south- 
eastern part  of  Umbria,  situated  amid  hills  borderinrr 
the  Apennines,  is  the  ancient  city  of  Cascia.  Cascia  v  ^  ^ 


Umbria,  Cos  da  and  Its  Greatness  15 

at  one  time,  the  capital  of  a  free  and  independent  repub- 
lic which  consisted  of  four  flourishing  cities.  Its  inhabi- 
tants were  a  brave  and  sturdy  people,  and  when,  in  the 
year  1300,  their  rights  and  liberties  were  threatened  by 
King  Robert  of  Naples,  the  Cascians,  who  had  tasted 
the  sweets  of  freedom  too  long  to  tamely  surrender  their 
liberty,  resisted  with  valor  and  bravery  the  King's 
army.  Success  crowned  their  vigorous  resistance  and 
the  intrepid  Cascians  won  a  glorious  and  decisive  victory 
over  their  powerful  enemies. 

There  are  extant  pieces  of  money,  coined  when  Cas- 
eia  was  at  the  zenith  of  its  power.  On  these  coins  is 
stamped  the  escutcheon  of  Cascia,  represented  by  a 
young  and  beautiful  maiden,  seated  on  a  throne  resting 
on  two  dragons'  heads.  The  maiden  holds  a  lily  in  her 
right  hand,  and  in  her  left  hand  a  serpent.  These 
same  heraldic  arms  may  yet  be  seen  emblazoned  on  one 
of  the  ancient  gates  which  guarded  the  principal  en- 
trance to  the  once  famous  city. 

In  the  course  of  time,  evil  days  fell  upon  the  once 
happy  and  prosperous  republic.  Wars,  and  especially 
civil  wars,  brought  disaster  and  dissension,  and  where 
hitherto  had  reigned  peace  and  prosperity,  there  began 
a  reign  of  gloom  and  despondency.  Finding  them- 
selves reduced  to  such  an  unhappy  and  miserable  con- 
dition, and  fearful  that  they  would  fall  imder  that  most 
terrible  of  God's  judgments — extermination,  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Cascia,  and  their  equally  unhappy  neighbors, 
placed  themselves  under  the  powerful  protection  of  the 
Blessed  Mother  of  God  and  became  voluntary  subjects 
of  the  Papal  States. 

The  Cascia  of  to-day  is,  so  to  speak,  but  a  shadow  of 
what  it  was  when  "ancient  and  famous."     At  present  it 


16  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

is  but  a  small  town.  The  number  of  its  inhabitants 
does  not  exceed  six  hundred.  Yet  small  as  Cascia  is, 
as  regards  the  number  of  its  people,  it  has  within  its 
walls  many  monuments,  which  are  living  witnesses  of 
the  ardent  and  hvely  faith  of  its  pious  population. 

In  Cascia  there  is  a  beautiful  parish-church,  dedi- 
cated to  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  and  several  houses  of 
religious  communities.  The  Augustinian  Order  has 
three  communities  in  that  little  Italian  town;  one  of 
friars  and  two  of  nuns.  The  friars'  monastery,  a 
fine  building,  is  dedicated  to  our  holy  founder,  St. 
Augustine.  One  of  the  nuns'  convents,  dedicated 
formerly  to  St.  Mary  Magdalen,  is  now  called  St. 
Rita's  convent.  The  other  religious  house  is  dedicated 
to  the  glorious  Virgin  St.  Lucy,  who  suffered  martyr- 
dom during  the  fierce  persecution  of  the  cruel  and 
impious  Dioclesian. 

But  though  the  religious  fame  and  glory  of  Cascia 
might  safely  rest  on  St.  Rita,  whose  name  is  a  house- 
hold word  in  Cascia,  still,  the  archives  of  that  blessed 
town  are  the  proud  possessors  of  records  which  mention 
the  names  of  many  holy  men,  the  sanctity  of  whose  lives 
perfumed,  as  it  were,  the  moral  atmosphere  of  Cascia. 
The  following  are  the  names  of  a  few  of  those  saintly 
servants  of  God,  of  whom  Cascia  is  the  proud  mother: 

Blessed  Giovanni  of  Castro  Clavano. 

Blessed  Ugolino,  O.  S.  A. 

Blessed  Simon,  O.  S.  A. 

Venerable  Andrea  of  Muciafore,  O.  S.  A. 

However,  among  the  many  cedars  of  this  Augustin- 
ian Lebanon,  our  Sister  St.  Rita  towers  above  all  others, 


Umbria,  Cascia  and  Its  Greatness  17 

and  the  story  of  her  marvellous  hf  e,  and  the  many  won- 
derful miracles,  wrought  through  her  intercession  after 
death,  will  convince  the  reader  that  God  is  indeed  won- 
derful in  His  saints,  and  that  St.  Rita,  the  Augustinian 
nun  of  Cascia,  is  truly,  as  a  venerating  world  calls  ker, 
the  Saint  of  the  Impossible, 


CHAPTER  II. 

The  Birthplace  and  Parents  or  St.  Rita 

^/t  OCC A  PORRENA  is  the  name  of  a  small  village, 
4\\  or  rather  hamlet,  about  three  miles  from  Cascia. 
^^  It  is  situated  near  a  small  river,  in  a  small  valley, 
at  the  foot  of  a  high  chff,  which,  separated  from  the 
adjoining  mountains,  has  the  appearance  of  a  perfectly 
formed  pine-cone.  There  is  a  tradition,  that  at  the  time 
of  our  Lord's  death  on  the  hill  of  Calvary,  an  earthquake 
spht  the  rocks  of  the  mountains  in  the  neighborhood  of 
Cascia,  and  that  this  particular  cliff  remained  com- 
pletely detached  from  the  mountains.  On  account  of 
its  rocky  site,  Porrena  is  called  Rocca  Porrena. 

In  this  small  village  there  lived,  about  the  year  1309, 
a  pious  couple  who,  having  plighted  their  troth  at  the 
foot  of  God's  holy  altar,  consecrated  every  day  of  their 
wedded  life  to  the  service  of  God,  and  to  the  practice 
of  those  virtues  which  are  most  pleasing  to  God.  ^  The 
names  of  that  worthy  couple  were  Antonio  Mancini  and 
Amata  Ferri.  Antonio  was  a  native  of  Rocca  Porrena ; 
Amata  was  born  at  Fogliano,  a  pretty  hamlet,  a  short 
distance  from  Cascia. 

Though  possessing  little  of  the  world's  riches.  An-; 
tonio  Mancini  earned  more  than  enough,  as  a  tiller  of] 
the  soil,  to  enable  himself  and  his  good  wife  to  live  com-, 
foi-tably.     Content  with  their  humble  lot,  the  happyl 

18 


The  Birthplace  and  Parents  of  St,  Rita  19 

couple  felt  no  poverty,  nor  did  they  desire  riches,  and 
they  gladly  distributed  to  the  poor  and  needy  all  they 
did  not  need  for  their  own  support  and  maintenance. 
Naturally,  such  generosity,  on  the  part  of  Antonio  and 
Amata  endeared  them  to  the  poor,  the  lips  of  many 
blessed  them,  and  God,  who  rewards  those  who  help 
His  needy  poor,  showered  His  choicest  spiritual  bless- 
ings upon  them. 

Not  only  were  Antonio  and  his  pious  wife  generous 
to  the  poor  and  needy,  but  they  were,  in  very  fact. 
Apostles  placed  by  God  in  Rocca  Porrena,  and  like 
Apostles  they  endeavored  to  teach  their  neighbors  by 
word  and  example,  that  the  only  way  to  save  their  souls, 
that  the  only  way  to  heaven,  was  by  fearing  and  loving 
God,  as  well  as  by  avoiding  and  shunning  sin  and  vice. 
The  examples  of  the  holy  lives  of  Antonio  and  Amata, 
the  peace  and  happiness  that  reigned  in  their  humble 
home  and  the  gladness  and  joy  that  were  ever  pictured 
on  their  countenances  won  many,  first,  to  admire  and  re- 
spect them,  and  then  to  imitate  their  holy  manner  of 
living.     Truly  may  we  say,  that  the  little  vine-clad  cot- 
tage of  Rocca  Porrena,  the  humble  home  of  Antonio 
■  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri,  must  have  been  a  holy  and 
a  heavenly  home,  and  were  the  world  blest  with  more 
such  homes,  the  world  w^ould  also  be  blest  with  more 
than  one  St.  Rita. 

The  true  story  of  the  apostolic  work  of  the  parents 
of  St.  Rita  is  known  to  God  alone.  Nevertheless,  one 
of  its  chapters  has  been  handed  down  to  us  by  zealous 
and  trustworthy  chroniclers  of  the  Order  of  St.  Augus- 
tine.^ These  chroniclers  relate,  that  the  home  of  St. 
Rita's  parents  was  truly  a  liouse  of  prayer,  a  sanctuary 
of  holiness,  and  that  their  lives  were  in  perfect  con- 
formity to  the  commandments  of  God  and  the  Church. 


20  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Casda 

They  meditated  morning  and  night  on  the  Passion  of 
Jesus  Chi-ist,  and  both  had  a  heartfelt  devotion  to  tiie 
ever-blessed  Virgin  Mary,  the  Immaculate  Mother  ot 
God.  Antonio  and  Amata  were  known,  for  miles 
around  Rocca  Porrena,  for  their  kindness  and  cheerful- 
ness. Everywhere  they  went,  they  cast  the  radiance  ol 
their  benevolence,  and  soothed  many  an  aching  heart. 
In  matters  of  confidence  they  vied  even  with  the  parish- 
priest.  Through  their  gentle  influence  family  dissen- 
sions were  healed,  and  through  their  prudent  advice 
many  indifferent  souls  were  led  back  to  the  friendship 

of  God.  n  ^    1   j.1. 

Filled  with  the  spirit  and  grace  of  God,  there  was 
born  in  the  hearts  of  Antonio  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri 
the  Apostolic  zeal  of  saving  souls.  They  hated  and 
detested  sin,  but  loved  the  sinner.  Hence  whenever  oc- 
casion required  it,  they  discovered  a  way  to  approach 
those  who  were  guilty  of  grievous  sins,  without  embai-- 
rassing  or  offending  them.  They  reproved  thein  with 
kindness  and  continued  their  gentle  reproof,  until  even 
the  most  hardened  sinners  were  moved  and  learned  to 
hate  and  be  sorry  for  their  sins  and  hastened  to  be  recon- 
ciled with  God  in  the  Tribunal  of  Penance. 

Many  times  when  the  parents  of  St.  Rita  happened 
to  be  in  the  company  of  some  of  their  neighbors,  who, 
not  satisfied  with  their  lot  in  life,  would  begin  to  mur- 
mur against  the  Providence  of  God,  the  pious  couple 
would  adroitly  change  the  topic  of  conversation,  and 
speak  so  feelingly  of  the  Passion  of  Jesus  Christ  that 
their  listeners  would  actually  forget  their  trials  and 
afflictions,  and  feel  ashamed  that  they  had  not  been  will- 
ing to  suffer  a  little  for  Him,  who  suffered  so  much  tor 
them.  Again,  when  malice,  aided  by  calumny,  had 
kindled  the  fires  of  discord,  and  was  fanning  the  flames 


The  Birthplace  and  Parents  of  St,  Rita  21 

of  revenge  in  the  hearts  of  individuals  and  families,  it 
was  then  that  Antonio  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri  em- 
ployed a  holy  diplomacy  that  must  have  been  inspired 
by  heaven.  They  silenced  the  voice  of  calumny,  dis- 
armed the  desire  of  revenge,  restored  harmony  among 
enemies,  and  even  transformed  enemies  into  ardent 
triends.  Such  apostolic  zeal,  such  gentleness  in  reprov- 
mg  sinners,  such  holy  tact  in  banishing  enmity  and  in 
setthng  quarrels  and  disputes,  won  for  the  parents  of 
^ t.  Kita  the  title :     Peace-makers  of  Jesus  Christ. 

in  Rocca  Porrena  there  existed  the  custom  of  ap- 
pointing every  year,  a  man  and  woman,  whose  office  or 
tunction  was  to  settle  the  disputes  and  contentions  that 
happened  to  arise  among  the  inhabitants.  This  ap- 
pointment was  made  on  the  first  Sunday  of  Lent  in  the 
parish-church,  and  by  the  parish-priest,  who  was  always 
very  careiul  to  make  a  prudent  appointment.  On  ac- 
count of  their  spotless  reputation  and  Well-deserved 
popu  arity,  it  was  very  natural  that  Antonio  Mancini 
and  his  wife  Amata  were  repeatedly  appointed  the 
Peace^7nakers  of  Rocca  Porrena;  and  biographers  tell 
us  that  their  judgments  were  always  accepted  as  if  thev 
were  the  judgments  of  God. 

Living  in  the  midst  of  a  holv  peace  and  happiness, 
the  fruits  of  a  truly  Christian  life,  there  was  one  ioy 
lacking  to  the  home  of  Antonio  and  his  spouse.  God 
had  sent  no  child  to  bless  their  marriage,  and  though 
tiiey  had  prayed  often  and  fervently  for  this  grea.  bless- 
ing, God  seemed  to  be  deaf  to  their  prayers.  Disap- 
pointed, as  they  naturallv  were,  because  their  prayers 
were  not  answered,  they  still  kept  on  praying;  and  even 
when  tliey  had  become  advanced  in  vears,  they  re- 
doubled their  ])rayers,  so  great  were  their  Iiope  and 
conhdence  in  God.     God  rewarded  their  hope  and  con- 


22  Life  of  Sister  St  Rita  of  Cascia 

fidence  and  bestowed  on  Amata  Mancini  the  same  favor 
He  had  bestowed  on  Anna,  the  mother  of  Samuel,  and 
on  Elizabeth,  the  mother  of  St.  John  the  Baptist. 

One  night,  whiie  Amata  was  praying  in  her  humble 
home,  an  angel  appeared  to  her,  in  a  vision,  and  told 
her  that  it  was  the  will  of  God  that  there  would  be  born 
of  her  a  daughter  who  would  be,  from  her  very  birth, 
marked  with  the  seal  of  sanctity,  gifted  with  every  vir- 
tue, and  that  she  was  to  be  a  helper  of  the  helpless,  an 
advocate  of  the  afflicted,  and  a  guiding  star  in  the  firma- 
ment of  the  Church.  Amata  was  consoled  and 
made  happy  by  the  words  of  the  angel,  and  when  she 
told  the  glad  news  to  her  husband  Antonio,  both  joined 
in  a  heart-felt  prayer  of  thanksgiving  to  God,  who  was 
pleased  to  bless  their  old  age  with  such  a  signal  favor. 


I 


CHAPTER  III. 

St.  Rita's  Bikth 

'^iJ'ILLED  with  unspeakable  joy  and  gladness,  that 
^w\  God  had  deigned  to  look  upon  her  with  mercy, 
^^  from  the  evening  the  angel  made  known  to  Amata 
Mancini  that  she  had  found  grace  with  God,  and  was  to 
become  a  mother,  both  she  and  her  husband  Antonio 
spent  their  days,  and  the  greater  part  of  their  nights, 
in  close  communication  with  God,  awaiting  the  happy 
event.  At  length  the  time  came,  when  the  little  hamlet 
of  Rocca  Porrena,  the  least,  indeed,  of  all  the  hamlets 
of  Umbria,  was  to  become  famous  as  the  birthplace  of 
a  child,  who,  in  after  years,  was  to  be  known  and  ven- 
erated as  a  great  saint  and  servant  of  God.  The  biog- 
raphers of  St.  Rita  give  the  day,  date  and  year  of  her 
birth,  as  Saturday,  May  22nd,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
1381,  during  the  pontificate  of  Pope  Urban  VI. 

Words  cannot  describe  the  indescribable  joy  of  An- 
tonio and  Amata,  as,  with  loving  eyes,  they  gazed  on 
their  little  daughter  whom  they  considered  a  precious 
gift  of  God,  the  fruit  of  their  desires,  and  the  reward  of 
their  long  years  of  hope  and  confidence  in  God.  The 
unexpected*^  news,  that  Amata  Mancini  had  become  a 
mother  in  her  old  age,  was  the  cause  of  much  surprise, 
talk,  and  gossip  among  the  inhabitants  of  Rocca  Por- 
rena.    All  considered  the  event  as  truly  miraculous. 

23 


24-  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

Every  man,  woman,  and  grown-up  child  of  the  little 
hamlet  went  to  offer  congratulations  to  the  happy  and 
overjoyed  parents,  and  all,  who  gazed  on  the  smihng 
face  of  the  new-born  babe,  were  charmed  by  the  radi- 
ance of  the  little  one's  wonderful  beauty. 

A  few  days  after  the  happy  delivery  of  Amata,  she 
desired  that  her  little  daughter  be  baptized,  and  both 
parents  began  to  consider  what  name  to  give  her. 
While  pondering  over  the  choice  of  a  name,  God  made 
known  to  the  pious  parents  that  it  was  His  wish,  that 
their  babe  should  be  named  Rita.  Accordingly  on  the 
fourth  day  after  her  birth,  the  child  of  Antonio  Mancini 
and  Amata  Ferri  was  baptized  in  St.  Mary's,  the  parish- 
church  of  Cascia,  there  being,  at  that  time,  no  baptis- 
mal font  in  the  church  at  Rocca  Porrena.  As  was  com- 
manded by  God,  the  little  babe  was  baptized  Rita,  a 
name  till  then  unknown  to  the  world,  but  since  that  time 
the  sweet  name  of  Rita  has  been  given  to  many  Catho- 
lic babes,  when  they  are  made  children  of  God,  and 
heirs  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  by  the  regenerating 
waters  of  the  Sacrament  of  Baptism. 

Some  authors,  who  have  written  the  life  of  our  saint, 
claim  that  she  received,  at  her  baptism,  the  name  of 
Margarita,  and  that  Rita  is  a  contraction  of  Margarita. 
But  though  we  Imow  that  the  practice  of  contracting 
or  syncopating  names,  and  especially  the  names  of 
women,  is  very  common  in  Italy,  we  follow  the  opinion 
of  the  learned  Augustinian  writer,  Didacus,  who  tells 
us  that  the  child  of  Antonio  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri 
was  baptized  Rita.  And  furthermore,  we  read  in  the 
Decree  of  the  Canonization  of  our  Saint,  that  it  was 
announced  to  Amata,  in  a  vision,  that  she  should  call 
her  child  Rita. 


St.  Ritas  Birth  25 

Shortly  after  Rita  had  been  regenerated  by  the  sav- 
ing waters  of  Baptism,  God  attested,  by  a  singular 
prodigy,  that  her  name  was  not  of  human  invention, 
but  rather  of  heavenly  origin.  The  day  after  her  Bap- 
tism, the  fifth  after  her  birth,  a  swarm  of  bees,  white 
as  the  driven  snow,  was  noticed  hovering  and  buzzing 
around  the  sweet  angehc  face  of  the  little  Rita,  as  she 
lay  quietly  sleeping  in  her  cradle.  The  bees  alighted  on 
her  lips  and  were  seen  to  enter  and  issue  forth  from  her 
partially  opened  mouth,  without  harming  her,  or  caus- 
ing her  to  awaken  from  her  slumber.  All  who  were 
witnesses  of  this  singular  prodigy  recognized  that  it  im- 
plied a  mystery,  though  they  could  not  understand  or 
fathom  its  meaning.  In  after  years,  Rita  herself  made 
known  the  meaning  of  the  mystery,  by  the  singular 
sweetness  and  simplicity  of  her  manner,  and  by  the 
eminent  sactity  of  her  marvellous  life,  of  which  the 
swarm  of  white  bees  that  buzzed  around  the  cradle  of 
her  infancy  was  a  happy  presage.  The  bees  were  also 
a  mysterious  presage  of  Rita's  future  Beatification  that 
was  to  take  place  when  the  bees  of  Urban  VIII  reigned 
in  the  Church. 

Concerning  these  mysterious  bees  we  must  observe. 
The  prodigy,  after  four  centuries,  still  exists  in  the  small 
swarm  of  bees  that  now  dwell  in  a  small  fissure  in  the 
convent  wall,  midway  between  the  cell  St.  Rita  occupied 
and  the  place  of  her  sepulchre.  Their  color  is  not  white, 
as  some  authors  have  said,  confounding  these  bees  with 
those  that  appeared  at  her  cradle.  Their  color  is  that 
of  the  common  bee,  except  the  back,  which  is  a  dark 
red,  and  tliey  have  no  sting.  They  live  retired  the 
greater  part  of  the  year,  but  they  leave  their  tiny  abode 
during  the  last  few  days  of  Holy  Week  and  return  for 
the  feast  of  St.  Rita.     On  one  occasion,  one  of  these 


26  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

bees  was  sent  to  Urban  VIII  enclosed  in  a  glass  vase. 
It  remained,  however,  but  one  day  in  the  Pope's  palace, 
and  returned,  at  once,  to  its  companions  in  Cascia.  We 
will  close  this  chapter  by  saying:  Catholic  mothers 
have  rocked  the  cradles  of  many  remarkable  babes,  but 
none  more  remarkable  than  that  of  our  little  sister — 
Rita  of  Rocca  Porrena. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Early  Years  of  St.  Rita 

^^NNOCENCE  and  purity  are  sister  virtues,  or  at 
^1  least  they  are  inseparable  companions.  Where  in- 
^-^  nocence  is,  there  also  is  purity.  In  fact,  innocence 
and  purity  are  so  intimately  associated  that  they  appear 
to  be  one  and  the  same  virtue.  Though  natural  to 
infancy,  the  exercise  of  these  two  virtues  is  the  effect  of 
divine  grace. 

Guided  by  the  wisdom  from  above,  Antonio  Mancini 
and  Amata  Ferri,  the  pious  parents  of  St.  Rita,  watched, 
with  loving  and  jealous  care,  over  every  day  of  her 
infancy,  for  they  regarded  their  little  babe  as  a  gift  from 
heaven,  the  fruit  of  a  special  grace,  and  the  child  of 
God  rather  than  of  man.  Hence  we  may  safely  say, 
without  any  fear  of  exaggeration,  that  little  Rita  Man- 
cini began  to  be  a  saint  and  to  live  a  supernatural  life, 
from  the  very  moment  of  her  Baptism,  when  her  soul 
was  made  beautiful  by  divine  grace.  And  that  the  vir- 
tues of  innocence  and  purity  were  deeply  rooted  in  her 
pure  soul,  for  scarcely  had  she  come  to  use  of  reason, 
than  she  became  the  possessor  of  an  innocence  and  a 
purity  which  were  really  man^ellous  in  one  of  so  tender 
an  age.  These  two  virtues  were  mirrored  on  her  an- 
gelic face.  Pier  every  word  exhaled  an  odor  of  sweet- 
ness, and  possessed  a  mysterious  power  which  inclined 

27 


28  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

the  soul  to  God;  while  her  every  act  bespoke  the  guid- 
ance of  a  power  far  above  the  human.  Little  Rita  was 
indeed,  so  to  speak,  a  precious  plant,  planted,  as  it  were, 
by  the  hands  of  God  in  His  vineyard,  and  with  loving 
care  did  God  cause  the  dews  of  heavenly  grace  to  fall 
gently  on  that  tender  plant,  which  was  to  become  in 
later  years,  and  we  may  say  for  all  years,  a  towering 
cedar  of  His  glory  and  omnipotence.  Clothed,  there- 
fore, as  our  little  sister  was,  with  the  double  cloak  of 
innocence  and  purity,  her  guardian  angel,  who  was  ever 
by  her  side,  took  her  by  the  hand  and  led  his  little  com- 
panion along  the  most  prudent  paths,  nor  did  God 
permit  her  to  perform  any  act,  or  entertain  any  thought, 
but  those  compatible  with  His  holy  will  and  service. 

It  is  not,  therefore,  a  matter  of  surprise,  that  the 
little  servant  of  God  differed  from  other  children  in  her 
early  years,  for  at  the  age  when  most  children  are  accus- 
tomed to  enjoy  and  amuse  themselves,  with  dolls  and 
other  playthings,  httle  Rita  Mancini  found  no  pleasure 
in  child-games  or  child-toys.  You  must  not  think,  how- 
ever, that  little  Rita  did  not  associate  with  children  of 
her  own  age;  on  the  contrary,  she  had  scores  of  little 
friends  among  the  children  of  Rocca  Porrena,  and 
though  she  did  not,  as  a  rule,  engage  in  their  games, 
nevertheless,  she  took  pleasure  in  seeing  her  little  friends 
enjoy  themselves.  Even  when  she  grew  larger,  instead 
of  desiring  to  be  present  at  picnics  or  parties  where 
little  girls  experience  great  joy  in  being  admired  and 
petted  by  relatives  and  friends,  the  little  Rita  preferred 
solitude  to  these  mirthful  gatherings,  and  many  a  time 
when  her  loving  mother  wished  to  dress  her,  according 
to  the  fashion  of  the  day,  she  would  hie  to  a  remote  cor- 
ner of  the  house,  to  pray  and  contemplate  the  divine 


The  Early  Years  of  St.  Rita  29 

mysteries,  particularly  the  Passion  of  Jesus  Christ,  a 
devotion  she  had  inherited  from  her  pious  parents. 

We  must  not  judge  from  little  Rita's  dislike  to  be 
clad  in  pretty  frocks  and  dresses,  that  she  was  at  times 
wilful  and  disobedient ;  on  the  contrary,  she  was  a  most 
obedient  child,  she  loved  dearly  her  aged  parents,  and 
many  and  many  a  time  did  she  kneel  at  her  mother's 
knees,  listening  to  her  holy  counsels,  after  the  manner 
of  the  little  immaculate  Mary  of  Nazareth  at  the  knees 
of  her  mother  St.  Anne.  Hence  what  may  have  seemed 
disobedience,  on  the  part  of  little  Rita,  were  in  fact 
mild  reproofs,  prompted,  no  doubt,  by  God,  against  that 
vanity  which  alas,  too  often  is  planted  by  indulgent 
parents,  in  the  hearts  of  their  young  children. 

One  of  little  Rita's  chief  delights  was  to  go  to  church 
.with  her  parents,  and  when  she  entered  the  house  of 
God,  she  sought  the  most  retired  place,  where  she  recited 
with  devotion  the  Angelical  Salutation  which  she  knew 
by  heart,  and  then,  as  if  God  had  given  His  little  ser- 
vant a  clear  understanding  of  the  Incarnation  of  our 
Lord,  she  would  close  her  eyes,  and  give  her  whole  soul 
to  a  deep  contemplation  of  this  great  mystery.  Often- 
times, while  assisting  at  the  holy  sacrifice  of  the  Mass, 
her  face  would  change  its  expression.  Sometimes  it 
bore  the  expression  of  glad  joy,  and  at  other  times,  her 
face  would  indicate  that  she  was  experiencing  moments 
of  sadness.  These  alternate  expressions  of  gladness 
and  sadness  plainly  told  how  glad  she  was  to  be  in  the 
house  of  God  kneeling  in  the  presence  of  Jesus  in  the 
Blessed  Sacrament,  and  how  sad  she  became  at  the  very 
thought  that  her  innocent  Jesus  was  obliged  to  die  an 
ignominious  death  on  the  wood  of  the  Cross.  Oh,  would 
that  we,  who  assist  so  often  at  the  holy  Sacrifice  of  the 


30  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

Mass,  could  experience,  in  our  hearts  and  souls,  the 
same  spiritual  joy  and  sadness! 

We  must  also  observe  that  little  Rita  had  a  great 
love  and  affection  for  the  poor.  At  table,  whenever  her 
mother  put  on  her  plate  a  portion  of  the  family  meal, 
one  portion  she  ate  herself,  the  other  portion  she  pre- 
served to  give  to  some  poor  child  of  the  neighborhood. 
This  practice  was  habitual  with  the  little  Rita,  and  it 
is  certain  she  felt  more  happiness  in  giving  away  a  por- 
tion of  her  meals,  than  in  eating  what  she  retained  for 
herself. 

The  people  of  Rocca  Porrena,  when  they  saw  how 
different  Rita  Mancini  was  from  the  other  children  of 
the  hamlet,  and  when  they  observ^ed  that  as  she  grew  in 
years,  her  life  became  more  holy  and  sacramental,  they 
respected  and  revered  her,  not  indeed  as  a  child,  but 
rather  as  a  person  grown  old  in  virtue.  Especially  were 
the  mothers  of  Rocca  Porrena  edified  by  her  holy  and 
exemplary  child-hfe,  and  they  were  continually  telling 
their  httle  daughters  to  take  Rita  Mancini  as  their 
model.  , 

The  fame  of  little  Rita's  holy  Hfe  was  not  limited 
to  the  narrow  zone  of  Rocca  Porrena,  it  became  known 
and  was  spoken  of  in  many  of  the  towns  and  villages 
of  Umbria;  but  especially  did  the  inhabitants  of  her 
humble  birthplace  rejoice,  for  they  were  beginnig  to 
see  realized  what  was  predicted  at  her  cradle  by  the 
swarm  of  white  bees,  which,  like  flakes  of  snow,  entered 
and  issued  from  her  sweet  mouth;  for  the  child-life  of 
St.  Rita  was  so  celestial,  that  she  appeared  to  be  a  little 
angel  living  in  the  world,  yet  immune  from  all  its  imper- 
fection and  corruption. 


CHAPTER  V. 

St.  Rita  Begins  to  Lead  a  Life  of  Retirement^  and 

Desires  Ardently  to  Consecrate  Her 

Virginity  to  God 

y^  OD  is,  indeed,  wonderful  in  His  saints,  and  a  care- 
i  |a  ful  study  of  the  life  of  St.  Rita  of  Cascia,  from  her 
^■^  cradle  to  the  grave,  will  convince  anyone  of  this 
beautiful  and  holy  truth.  Already  a  model  of  inno- 
cence and  purity,  and  though  as  yet  but  a  cliild,  it  was 
Rita's  ardent  desire  to  live  a  sohtary  life  in  some  hidden 
cave  or  grotto,  where  she  might  pass  her  days  uninter- 
rupted in  prayer  and  contemplation,  because  she  cov- 
eted to  be  alone  with  God.  Filial  love,  however,  and  the 
obedience  due  her  aged  parents  whom  she  felt  would 
oppose  this,  hindered  the  execution  of  her  holy  desire. 

Not  a  little  disappointed,  but  by  no  means  dis- 
couraged, she  wavered  not  in  her  determination  to  live 
in  retirement,  so  that  she  might  be  as  near  as  possible 
to  God.  How  to  succed  in  this  determination,  and  at 
the  same  time  be  su])missive  to  her  parents,  was  for 
Rita  a  perplexing  problem.  Her  perplexity,  however, 
was  of  short  duration,  (rod,  who  must  have  regarded 
with  rapture  the  pure  and  innocent  heart  of  His  young 
senant,  inspired  her  to  build  a  small  but  pretty  oratory 
in  a  retired  part  of  her  home,  where  she  remained  for 
one  whole  year,  separated  from  all  cHDmmerce  with  the 

31 


32  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

world,  unless  we  except  her  parents,  to  whom  she  spoke 
only  when  necessary.  During  that  year  of  sohtude, 
Rita  spent  her  time  meditating  on  the  sorrowful  mys- 
teries of  the  Passion  of  Jesus  Christ.  And,  as  a  help 
to  her  meditation,  she  had  painted  on  the  walls  of  her 
little  oratory  some  scenes  of  the  hfe  of  Christ;  such  as, 
the  crib  wherein  the  infant  Jesus  was  laid  after  His 
birth;  Mount  Calvary,  the  theatre  of  His  death  on  the 
Cross ;  and  the  sepulchre  wherein  His  sacred  body  was 
placed,  after  it  had  been  taken  down  from  the  Cross. 
It  is  also  probable  that  a  picture  of  the  Blessed  Mother 
of  Jesus  ornamented  the  walls  of  her  oratory.  Gaz- 
ing at  those  pictures,  she  experienced  no  distractions  in 
her  prayers  or  meditations,  but  true  as  the  steel  to  the 
magnet,  her  heart  and  soul  were  so  attracted  by  Jesus 
Christ,  that  she  desired  nothing  more  than  to  have  and 
possess  the  love  and  grace  of  her  crucified  Lord. 

At  the  conclusion  of  that  year,  spent,  for  the  most 
part,  in  constant  prayer  and  commerce  with  God  and 
His  mother,  Rita  saw  that  her  parents  needed  her  con- 
stant aid  and  assistance,  especially  her  mother. 

Antonio  Mancini,  once  robust  and  vigorous,  had  be- 
come so  feeble  that  it  w^as  with  great  difficulty  he  culti- 
vated a  small  garden,  which  supplied  his  frugal  table 
with  vegetables ;  and  his  faithful  wife  Amata,  whose  age 
had  debilitated  and  sapped  her  stength,  could  only  per- 
form a  small  part  of  the  ordinary  household  duties. 
Rita,  who  understood  thoroughly  the  obligations  of 
children  towards  their  parents,  judged  it  to  be  the  will 
of  God  that  she  should  give  up  her  retired  life,  so  that 
it  might  not  be,  in  any  way,  a  hindrance  to  her  duty 
towards  her  aged  father  and  mother.  Accordingly, 
Rita  came  forth  from  the  retreat  where  she  had  spent 
so  many  days  and  nights  with  God,  and  became,  to  the 


St.  Rita  Begins  a  Life  of  Retirement  33 

great  joy  of  her  parents,  the  housekeeper,  so  to  speak, 
of  her  humble  home. 

How  well  Rita  performed  the  duties  of  house- 
keeper, we  may  surmise.  And  it  must  have  pleased  her 
parents,  especially  her  mother,  to  see  how  industrious 
and  painstaking  their  little  daughter  was,  as,  like  an 
angel,  in  human  form,  she  busied  herself  while  at  work. 
But  though  Rita  was  most  assiduous  about  her  work, 
it  never  seemed  to  interfere  or  interrupt  her  prayer,  not- 
withstanding her  extreme  attention  to  her  exterior  em- 
ployments, she  acquired  a  wonderful  facility  of  joining 
them  with  mental  prayer,  and  of  keeping  herself  con- 
stantly in  the  presence  of  God,  who,  no  doubt,  aided 
His  little  hand-maid  with  her  work,  and  guided  her  little 
hands  to  make  and  keep  the  humble  home  of  her  parents 
a  model  of  order  and  neatness.  Would  that  the  chil- 
dren of  the  present  day  loved  and  obeyed  their  parents 
as  did  little  Rita  jMancini !  Then  would  be  silenced  for- 
ever that  complaint  of  so  many  fathers  and  mothers: 
*'I  have  lost  control  of  my  children." 

Having  spent  a  few  years  employed  in  the  duties  of 
housekeeper,  Rita  arrived  at  that  age,  when  young  girls, 
especially  in  Italy,  are  accustomed  to  choose  their  future 
state  in  life.  From  the  Augustinian  breviary  we  learn 
tliat  Rita  Mancini  was  twelve  years  of  age  when  she 
made  her  choice.  She  consulted  no  one  but  God,  and 
as  it  was  her  one  desire  to  consecrate  her  virginity  to 
God,  so  that  she  might  better  preserve  the  candor  of 
her  soul,  of  which  the  white  bees  that  hovered  around 
her  cradle  were  the  heralds,  she  determined  to  be  a  true 
spouse  of  Christ,  by  embracing  a  religious  life,  and  be- 
come a  nun.  But  alas,  many  years  were  to  pass  before 
Rita's  aspirations  were  fulfilled,  for,  by  the  permission 


34  JLife  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

of  God,  it  was  only  after  being  tried  in  the  crucible  of 
afflictions  and  contradictions,  that  she  found,  at  last,  that 
happiness  for  which  her  heart  yearned  from  the  time 
she  was  but  a  child. 

,  Having  resolved  to  become  a  spouse  of  Jesus  Christ, 
and  to  dehcate  herself  wholly  to  His  service,  Rita's  first 
thought,  as  became  an  obedient  daughter,  was  to  make 
known  her  determination  to  her  parents  and  obtain  their 
permission.  Accordingly,  one  evening,  when  her  father 
and  mother  were  talking  together,  Rita,  who  had  been 
an  attentive  listener  to  their  pious  and  holy  conversa- 
tion, waited  until  they  finished.  She  then  kissed  them 
both  reverently,  and  told  them  that  she  had  made  up 
her  mind  to  become  a  nun. 

Antonio  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri  were  overcome 
with  surprise,  and  their  old  and  wrinkled  countenances 
became  clouded  with  sadness,  at  what  their  young 
daughter  had  told  them.  And  as  she  continued,  with 
humility  and  with  an  eloquence  that  was  more  than 
human,  to  plead  for  their  permission,  every  word  that 
Rita  uttered  pierced,  like  sharp  arrows,  the  hearts  of  her 
parents  and  even  brought  tears  to  their  eyes.  And  yet, 
because  Rita  loved  her  parents,  and  would  not  do  any- 
thing to  cause  them  the  least  sorrow  or  pain,  there  were 
included  in  her  holy  plea,  the  words  of  submission  and 
resignation:  "Not  my  will,  dear  parents,  but  thine  be 
done." 

The  silence  that  followed  Rita's  earnest  plea  for  her 
parents'  permission  to  permit  her  to  embrace  the  re- 
ligious state,  caused  her  to  divine  that  her  parents  had 
just  reasons  for  not  granting  her  desire.  At  length 
when  her  parents  could  no  longer  hide  their  sorrow,  they 
broke  silence,  and,  betwixt  sobs  and  sighs,  spoke  feelingly 


St,  Rita  Begins  a  Life  of  Retirement  35 

to  Rita.  They  reminded  her  that  they  were  already  ad- 
vanced in  years ;  that  she  was  their  only  child,  and,  after 
God,  their  solace,  comfort  and  support ;  and  finally  they 
said,  that  through  her,  they  hoped  to  see  their  family 
saved  from  extinction.  The  tears  and  pleading  of  An- 
tonio and  Amata  were  not  fruitless.  Hitherto  Rita  had 
never  disobeyed  her  parents.  In  fact,  it  had  been  her 
custom  to  anticipate  their  wishes.  But,  on  this  occasion, 
no  one  but  God  will  ever  know  how  much,  and  what  it 
cost  Rita  Mancini,  when  she  told  her  parents  that  she 
would  obey  their  will  and  remain  at  home  to  comfort 
and  assist  their  old  age.  Nevertheless,  though  love  and 
obedience  prevented  Rita  from  embracing  the  religious 
state,  she  was  firmly  determined  to  remain  a  faithful 
spouse  of  her  divine  bridegroom,  Jesus  Christ,  to  whom, 
in  her  heart,  she  had  pledged  her  fidelity. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

St.  Rita  Sacrifices  Her  Will  on  the  Altae  of 
Obedience,  and  Consents  to  Enter  the 

Marriage  State 


W 


'E  HAVE  related  in  the  last  chapter,  that  Rita, 
yielding  to  the  tears  and  supplications  of  her 
aged  parents,  promised  to  remain  at  home  to 
comfort  and  assist  them.  Her  promise,  however,  did 
not,  in  any  way,  weaken  her  determination  to  preserve 
inviolate  the  flower  of  her  virginity,  which  she  already 
desired  to  consecrate  to  God.  But  seeing  that  there  was 
little  hope  of  embracing  the  religious  state,  at  least, 
while  her  parents  hved,  so  inflamed  was  she  with  the 
love  of  Jesus  Christ  and  the  most  glorious  Virgin  Mary, 
that  she  resolved  never  to  embrace  the  married  state. 
Having  made  this  resolution,  a  double  joy  and  consola- 
tion filled  the  heart  of  Rita ;  she  could  remain  faithful  to 
her  divine  Bridegroom,  and,  at  the  same  time  be  a  lov- 
ing and  obedient  daughter.  By  reason  of  this  double 
joy  and  consolation,  a  heavenly  light  illumined  con- 
tinually her  countenance,  and,  as  she  performed,  day 
in  and  day  out,  her  domestic  duties,  she  cast  a  halo  of 
happiness  everywhere  around  her. 

But  Rita's  joy  and  happiness  were  of  short  dura- 
tion. Her  filial  love  and  obedience  were  to  be  put  to  a 
further  test,  a  test  that  was  to  cause  in  her  soul,  a  real 

36 


St.  Rita  Enters  the  Marriage  State  37 

combat  between  her  love  of  God,  and  the  love  of  her 
parents.  Antonio  Mancini  and  Amata  Ferri,  overjoyed 
that  their  daughter  had  given  up  the  idea  of  entering  a 
convent,  now  determined  that  she  should  enter  the  mar- 
riage state.  They  had  already  hinted  that  this  was  their 
wish,  when  they  had  persuaded  their  young  daughter, 
that  she  was  duty-bound  not  to  abandon  them.  It  is 
certain,  however,  that  in  yielding  to  the  entreaties  of 
her  parents  not  to  enter  a  convent,  it  had  never  entered 
into  the  mind  of  Rita  to  have  any  spouse  other  than 
Jesus  Christ.  We  can,  therefore,  imagine,  first,  the 
surprise  and  then  the  inexpressible  anguish  to  which  Rita 
became  a  prey,  when  her  parents  told  her,  they  were 
going  to  choose  a  husband  for  her,  as  it  was  their  wish 
that  she  sould  marry.  Their  age  added  eloquence  to 
their  words  as  they  insisted  that  she  should  consent  to 
their  wishes.  They  reminded  her  that  she  had  been 
given  to  them  in  their  old  age,  long  after  they  had  almost 
given  up  all  hope  of  offspring,  and  they  emphasized, 
that  she,  by  her  marriage,  w^ould  be  the  cause,  not  only 
of  saving  their  family  from  extinction,  but  also  of  mak- 
ing their  declining  years  happy  and  comfortable.  We 
•would,  indeed,  be  tempted  to  condemn  Antonio  Man- 
cini and  his  wife  Amata  for  arrogating  to  themselves  the 
riglit  to  force  the  vocation  of  their  daughter,  and  thus 
making  her  the  prey  of  human  calculation,  did  we  not 
believe  that  God,  in  His  profound  and  impenetrable 
wisdom,  permitted  this,  so  that  Ilis  chosen  servant  Rita, 
after  Iiaving  been  a  model  for  Christian  maidens,  should 
also,  like  Saint  Monica,  become  a  model  for  Christian 
wives  and  mothers. 

The  unexpected  announcement  of  her  parents  ^\Tung 
I  tears  from  the  eyes  of  Rita,  and  nearly  broke  her  heart. 
:  A  sort  of  paralysis  seized  her,  and  for  some  moments 


38  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

she  could  not  find  her  voice.  When  the  martyrdom  that 
was  taking  place  in  her  pure  soul  had  somewhat  subsided, 
Rita  recovered  the  use  of  her  tongue,  and  firmly  but  with 
dove-hke  simplicity,  said:  "My  parents,  I  do  not  wish 
any  spouse  but  Jesus  Christ.  Years  ago  I  dedicated 
my  whole  body,  heart  and  soul  to  His  love  and  holy 
service.  Because  you  wished  it,  I  gave  my  promise  not 
to  enter  a  convent.  I  feel  sure,  with  the  help  of  God, 
without  embracing  the  marriage  state,  that  I  will  be 
able  to  console  and  comfort  you,  and  provide  for  all 
your  necessities,  until  God  calls  you  to  a  better  and  a 
happier  home." 

But  Antonio  and  Amata,  who  had  made  up  their 
minds  that  their  daughter  should  marry,  turned  deaf 
ears  to  the  heartfelt  words  of  Rita,  and  the  poor  child, 
judging  that  further  speech  would  be  useless,  in  her 
desire  to  be  alone  with  God,  retired  from  the  presence 
of  her  parents,  and  hurried  to  the  solitude  and  quiet  of 
her  beloved  oratory.  Once  within  its  walls,  she  fell 
upon  her  knees,  and  raising  her  eyes,  with  hope  and  con- 
fidence, to  the  crucifix,  asked  her  crucified  Lord  to  re- 
lieve her  of  that  poignant  perplexity  which  had  begun 
to  tear  her  very  heart,  from  the  moment  her  parents  told 
her  that  it  was  their  will  that  she  should  marry.  She 
also  implored  the  Queen  of  Angels  and  Virgins,  and 
asked  her  to  be  so  kind  as  to  obtain  for  her  from  God 
the  lights  which  were  necessary  for  accomphshing  what 
would  prove  most  acceptable  to  His  divine  majesty,  and 
conducive  to  her  soul's  salvation,  expressing  to  her 
merely  the  ardent  desire  she  felt  of  embracing  on  earth 
an  angehc  mode  of  life. 

Without  any  doubt,  Rita  knew  it  would  be  no  sii 
to  marry  in  obedience  to  the  will  of  her  parents,  bu1 
since  she  felt  that  God  had  called  her,  even  from  he] 


St.  Rita  Enters  the  Marriage  State  39 

early  years,  to  be  His  spouse,  and  since  she  had  respond- 
ed generously  to  this  summons,  by  desiring  to  vow  to 
God  the  jewel  of  her  virginity,  Rita  now  awaited  on 
bended  knee  the  voice  and  decision  of  God,  which  would 
tell  her  if  she  should  and  could  obey  the  will  of  her 
parents  without  offending  the  will  of  her  Jesus  whom 
she  loved  with  her  whole  heart  and  soul. 

It  is  very  certain  that  the  fervent  prayers  which  Rita 
offered  in  her  little  oratory  were  graciously  heard  by 
God,  who  soothed  and  consoled  her  aching  and  troubled 
heart.  And  we  may  believe  that  God  made  kno^vn  to 
His  servant  Rita,  that  she  should  conform  and  submit 
her  ^dll  to  the  will  of  her  parents,  and  that  by  so  doing, 
she  would  obey  His  holy  will,  without  losing  any  of 
the  merits  already  gained  by  the  ardent  desire  of  conse- 
crating her  virginity  to  Him,  as  the  sole  Lord  and 
Spouse  of  her  heart  and  soul. 

As  soon  as  Rita  had  learned  that  it  was  the  will  of 
God  that  she  should  submit  to  the  will  of  her  parents, 
and  that  she  would  please  God  more  by  her  submission 
than  by  following  her  own  will,  she  resolved,  then  and 
there,  to  obey  the  voice  and  will  of  God,  and  offer  no 
further  opposition  to  the  will  and  desires  of  her  parents. 
Accordingly,  Rita  returned  to  her  parents,  and  pros- 
trating herself  at  their  feet,  humbly  asked  pardon  for 
the  repugnance  she  had  hitherto  manifested  to  their  will, 
and  told  them  she  was  disposed  and  willing  to  embrace 
whatever  state  of  life  they  wished  her  to  enter. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

St.  Rita's  Marriage 

ANTONIO  MANCINI  and  Amata  Ferri, 
happy  with  joy  because  their  daughter  had  con- 
sented to  enter  the  marriage  state,  began,  at  once, 
the  search  for  a  suitable  husband  for  Rita.  A  model  of 
children,  because  her  childhood  was  most  remarkable, 
she  became  the  model  of  maidens,  when  she  stepped 
across  the  threshold  that  separates  childhood  from  maid- 
enhood. Beautiful  as  an  angel,  modest  as  innocence 
and  lovable  as  virtue,  Rita  Mancini  could  have  had,  if 
she  wished,  many  suitors  for  her  hand.  All  who  saw 
her  could  not  help  being  attracted  by  her  physical 
beauty,  and  all  who  knew  her  were  charmed  by  her 
native  modesty,  both  in  conduct  and  speech.  In  a 
word,  Rita  Mancini  was  esteemed  and  respected  by 
every  one  with  whom  she  came  in  contact.  We  can 
easily  believe,  that  among  the  many  exemplary  and 
industrious  young  men  of  Rocca  Porrena  there  were 
more  than  one  who  would  have  gladly  chosen  Rita  as 
wife,  but  since  we  know  that  from  her  earliest  years, 
her  sole  desire  was  to  have  no  other  lover  but  Jesus 
Christ,  we  can  well  understand  why  she  had  no  desire 
to  keep  company  with  the  opposite  sex. 

But  now  the  time  had  come  when  Rita  Mancini  was 
to  enter  a  new  state  in  life.     She  had  yielded  to  the 

40 


St,  Ritas  Marriage  41 

insistence  of  her  aged  parents,  and  had  consented  to 
marry  whomsoever  they  would  choose  for  her  husband. 
That  Rita's  choice  would  have  been  a  different  and  a 
better  one  than  that  of  her  parents,  we  have  no  doubt. 
But  Rita  had  no  voice  in  the  matter,  for  Antonio  Man- 
cini  and  his  wife  Amata  selected  for  their  future  son- 
in-law,  a  young  man  whose  name  was  Ferdinando.  The 
early  biographers  of  St.  Rita  tell  us  that  Ferdinando 
was  the  son  of  well-to-do  and  influential  parents.  He 
was  gifted  with  excellent  parts,  but  proud  and  haughty, 
surly  in  speech,  and  by  no  means  a  religious  man. 

There  is  no  doubt  but  that  Ferdinando,  who  was  the 
very  opposite  in  character  and  disposition  to  the  modest 
and  gentle  Rita,  felt  highly  honored,  when  he  learned 
from  her  parents  that  he  was  the  only  one,  among  all 
the  young  men  of  Rocca  Porrena,  who  might  pay  court 
to  their  daughter  with  the  view  of  leading  her  to  the 
altar  as  his  bride.  Ferdinando  proved  himself  an  ar- 
dent wooer,  and  after  a  short  courtship,  he  and  Rita 
pledged  their  marriage  vows  before  the  altar  of  God, 
in  the  presence  of  Jesus  Christ  in  the  Blessed  Sacra- 
ment. The  marriage  of  Ferdinando  and  Rita  recalls  to 
our  mind  the  marriage  of  St.  Monica,  the  mother  of 
the  illustrious  St.  Augustine.  She  was  married  under 
circumstances  similar  to  those  of  St.  Rita,  and  like  St. 
Rita,  has  bequeathed  to  posterity  a  sacred  name  and 
memory,  both  written  with  letters  of  gold  in  the  annals 
of  the  Catholic  Church. 

Ferdinando  and  Rita  spent  the  days  of  their  honey- 
moon, as  is  the  custom  in  Italy,  visiting  and  enjoying 
themselves  among  relatives  and  friends.  Outwardly, 
Rita  appeared  to  be  liappy.  She  shook  hands  with  all 
who  approached  to  offer  congratulations,  and  acknowl- 
edged with  a  sweet  smile  the  many  good  wishes  that 


42  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

were  showered  upon  her.  But  her  heart  and  soul  took 
no  part  in  the  festivities  that  were  going  on  around  her ; 
for  do  what  she  would,  she  could  not  help  shedding  tears 
at  the  very  thought  of  losing  that  pearl  of  earthly  happi- 
ness, which  she  had  sought  to  give  and  consecrate  solely 
to  God. 

Rita  had  been  married  but  a  very  short  time,  when 
Ferdinando  began  to  show  his  true  character,  and  Rita 
began  to  experience  that  her  marriage  was  an  appren- 
ticeship to  trials  and  sorrows.  Words  cannot  describe 
the  almost  inhuman  conduct  of  Ferdinando  with  regard 
to  his  wife  Rita.  When  he  spoke,  his  words  were  al- 
ways harsh  and  cruel.  Like  the  sea  that  is  agitated  by 
the  least  motion  of  the  wind,  Ferdinando  flew  into  a 
passion  at  everything  that  Rita  said,  or  at  everything 
she  did,  so  that  instead  of  her  companion  and  protector, 
he  was  in  very  fact  her  relentless  persecutor. 

Under  the  weight  and  strain  of  such  persecution,  and 
we  may  call  it  martyrdom,  many  a  young  vnf e  would 
have  succumbed  under  the  ordeal,  but  not  so  Rita.  She 
suffered  the  unnatural  treatment  of  her  cruel  husband 
with  a  surprising  courage  and  fortitude,  and  aided  by 
God,  who  gave  her  the  grace  of  suffering,  she  gave  a 
most  signal  example  of  patience  and  humility. 

Armed  with  these  two  eminent  virtues,  Rita  set  to 
work  to  perform  and  conquer  the  sullen  and  perverse 
disposition  of  Ferdinando.  Well  trained,  from  her 
early  years,  in  the  art  of  housekeeping,  she  helped  her 
maids  perform  the  household  duties,  with  the  utmost 
care  and  diligence,  and  was  most  untiring  in  her  efforts 
to  make,  as  only  a  good  wife  can,  the  home  of  her  hus- 
band an  earthly  paradise.  In  her  endeavors  to  check 
the  wild  rage  of  his  anger,  she  sometimes  observed  a 
strict  silence,  uttering  not  a  single  word.     At  other 


St,  Ritas  Marriage  43 

times  she  performed  with  humihty  whatever  he  com- 
manded her  to  do,  and  very  often  answered  him  when 
forced  to  do  so,  with  words  of  hohness  and  sweetness 
such  as  angels  use. 

But  alas,  the  ugly  and  morose  character  of  Ferdi- 
nando,  instead  of  becoming  less  rude  and  sullen,  became 
more  and  more  an  instrument  of  torture  to  Rita's  pa- 
tience, a  patience  as  praiseworthy  and  laudable  as  that 
of  holy  Job.  For  if  God  permitted  that  His  servant 
Job  should  suffer  great  temporal  losses,  as  well  as  the 
calumnies  of  liis  best  friends,  and  even  of  his  own  wife, 
so  that  his  patience  might  be,  for  all  ages,  a  shining 
example,  we  may  also  say  the  same  as  regards  the 
sufferings  and  patience  of  St.  Rita.  When  she  plighted 
her  troth  to  Ferdinando  she  thought  he  would  be  both  a 
loving  husband  and  a  kind  companion.  But  instead, 
he  proved  himself  a  cruel  enemy  who  continually  morti- 
fied and  tortured  her.  He  dissipated,  and  squandered 
much  of  his  money  at  gaming,  and  though  he  gave  Rita 
more  than  enough  money  for  the  household  expenses, 
he  was  always  complaining  that  she  was  extravagant. 
He  insulted  her  time  and  again  with  injurious  and  scur- 
rilous words,  and  sometimes,  perhaps,  laid  violent  hands 
upon  her  defenseless  body.  But  Rita  suffered  all  this 
cruel  treatment  with  heroic  patience,  because  it  was  the 
will  of  God  that  she  should  become  a  mirror  of  patience, 
by  means  of  which  slie  was  the  beloved  of  God,  and  loved 
and  revered  bv  men. 

In  closing  this  chapter,  we  may  say  with  truth,  that 
God  placed  St.  Rita  in  His  church  and  made  her  both 
a  mirror  and  a  flaming  torch,  so  that  married  women 
may  see  in  her  and  learn  from  her  example,  how  to 
suffer  with  fortitude  and  patience,  the  bad  conduct  and 
cruel  treatment  of  bad  and  y^ervcrse  liusbands. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

St.  Rita,  by  Her  Humility  and  Patience,  Converts 

Her  Cruel  Husband 

^JfHERE  is  in  the  character  of  each  of  the  great 
l1  ^  saints  of  the  Augustinian  Order,  a  peculiar  trait 
^^  or  virtue  that  attracts,  in  a  special  manner,  our 
attention  and  admiration.  In  St.  Augustine,  we  find  a 
burning  love  for  penance  after  his  memorable  conver- 
sion; in  St.  Monica,  we  discover  a  remarkable  love  of 
prayer ;  in  St.  Thomas  of  Villanova,  we  cannot  help  ob- 
serving his  extreme  charity  for  the  poor  and  needy;  in 
St.  Clare  of  Montefalco,  we  are  moved  by  her  great  de- 
votion to  the  Passion  of  Jesus  Christ ;  but  when  we  come 
to  speak  of  St.  Rita  of  Cascia,  though  she  possessed,  in 
an  eminent  degree,  the  virtues  for  which  her  spiritual 
brothers  and  sisters  are  distinguished,  we  must  say,  that 
it  is  chiefly  on  account  of  her  God-like  love  of  humility 
and  patience,  that  she  merits  our  unstinted  respect  and 
veneration.  And  we  shall  see  in  the  course  of  this 
chapter,  that  it  was  by  reason  of  the  exercise  of  these 
two  virtues,  that  she  converted  her  cruel  husband  from 
his  wicked  ways,  and  made  her  home  a  peaceful  sanctu- 
ary of  holy  bliss. 

As  we  related  in  the  last  chapter,  Ferdinando,  the 
husband  of  Rita,  did  all  he  could,  by  his  wicked  and 
perverse  conduct,  to  make  her  life  miserable  and  un- 

44 


St,  Rita  Converts  Her  Cruel  Hushand         45 

happy.  But  like  the  vahant  woman  she  was,  she 
rendered  him  good  and  not  evil.  Mindful  of  the  prom- 
ises she  made  at  the  foot  of  the  altar,  Rita  humbly  obeyed 
her  husband  with  extraordinary  punctuality  and  zeal. 
Of  a  most  retiring  disposition,  instead  of  visiting  or 
gossiping  with  the  women  of  the  neighborhood,  she  re- 
mained at  home,  never  leaving  it,  except  to  pay  a  visit 
to  her  aged  parents,  or  to  go  to  Mass  or  Vespers.  But 
never  did  she  go  anywhere,  without  acquainting  her  hus- 
band, or  asking  his  permission.  She  paid  much  atten- 
tion to  the  comfort  of  Ferdinando,  and  took  zealous 
care  that  his  clothes  were  always  scrupulously  neat. 
The  management  of  her  household  was  wise  and  prudent, 
and  to  teach  with  example  what  she  advocated  with 
words,  she  clothed  herself  with  modest  raiment,  not  hav- 
ing the  least  desire  for  costly  and  stylish  dresses  or  any 
kind  of  ornaments.  For  Rita  knew  well,  that  all  the 
beauty  of  the  King's  daughter  is  within.  She  was  kind 
and  affable  to  the  domestics  of  her  household,  and 
studied  to  make  them  happy  and  contented  with  their 
lot.  She  saw  that  they  attended  their  rehgious  duties, 
taught  them  good  and  polite  manners,  and  moulded 
them  into  models  of  obedience,  neatness  and  propriety. 
So  much  so  indeed,  that  her  neighbors  were  accustomed 
to  tell  their  domestics  that  they  should  take  pattern  from 
those  of  Rita.  And  it  was  a  common  saying  in  Rocca 
Porrena,  that  as  Rita  ^lancini  had  been  a  model  of  a 
perfect  maiden,  she  was  indeed  a  model  of  a  perfect 
wife. 

What  a  pity,  we  are  inclined  to  say,  that  Rita,  who 
carried  sunshine  and  holiness  as  an  atmosphere,  had  to 
undergo  so  many  trials  and  sufferings.  And  yet,  in 
spite  of  those  trials  and  sufferings,  slie,  so  to  speak,  by 
making  use  of  the  trowel  of  humihty  and  the  mortar  of 


46  lAfe  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

patience,  laid  the  corner-stone  and  builded  the  founda- 
tion, on  which  was  erected  that  splendid  edifice  of  do- 
mestic peace  that  won  the  admiration  and  encomiums  of 
her  neighbors. 

We  know  that  from  the  very  bgeinning  of  her  mar- 
ried life,  her  husband  Ferdinando  was  an  obstacle  to 
that  peace.  But  Rita  met  his  opposition  with  the  arms 
of  humility  and  patience  which  experience  had  taught 
her  to  handle  with  skill  and  precision.  Whenever  her 
husband  became  angry,  she  studied  to  sweeten  his  tem- 
per; sometimes  by  silence,  and  indeed  her  silence  was  a 
wordless  prayer  that  ascended  to  heaven;  and  at  other 
times  she  waited  until  his  fit  of  anger  was  over,  and  then 
she  would  try  with  sweet  and  holy  words,  to  reason  with 
him,  and  make  him  understand,  how  great  was  his  of- 
fense against  God,  and  how  little  he  thought  of  his 
intelligence,  to  allow  himself  to  become  the  prey  and 
the  slave  of  anger  and  passion. 

This  manner  of  acting,  on  the  part  of  Rita,  had  a 
great  and  beneficial  effect  on  her  husband,  and  many  a 
time  after  she  had  mildly  upbraided  him,  ft)r  yielding 
to  anger  and  using  injurious  words,  he  would  become 
somewhat  embarrassed  and  actually  ashamed  of  him- 
self, and  would  rush  from  the  house  and  not  return  until 
he  became  fully  calm  and  recollected. 

As  time  went  by,  Rita  observed  with  joy  that  Ferdi- 
nando was  beginning  to  be  less  choleric  and  less  cruel 
in  his  manner  of  speaking  and  acting  towards  her.  Her 
humility  and  patience,  supplemented  by  prayers  and 
tears,  softened  his  fierce  and  almost  ungovernable  tem- 
per, and  God  opened  his  eyes  and  made  him  see  and 
understand,  what  a  cruel  husband  he  had  been  to  per- 
secute and  torment  a  wife,  who  bore  and  tolerated  his 
angry  and  injurious  words,  with  the  meekness  of  a  dove, 


St,  Rita  Converts  Her  Cruel  Husband         47 

who  served  him  with  Immility ;  who  respected  him  when 
he  himself  had  lost  all  respect;  and  who  obeyed  him, 
when  obedience  cost  her  much  suffering  and  many 
humiliations. 

Ferdinando  became  at  length  a  changed  man.  He 
saw,  as  in  a  vision,  what  manner  of  man  he  had  been, 
and  was  truly  pentitent.  He  confessed  with  a  sorrow- 
ful heart,  that  blinded  by  passion,  he  had  been  an  un- 
grateful and  cruel  husband.  He  frequently  returned 
thanks  to  God,  for  having  given  him  as  a  wife,  so  good 
and  exemplary  a  woman  as  Rita,  who  by  her  humility 
and  patience,  had  led  him  from  the  paths  of  wickedness 
and  disorder  onto  the  paths  of  virtue  and  peace,  thereby 
making  him  faithful  to  all  the  duties  of  a  good  hus- 
band and  a  devout  Christian. 

Peace  and  harmony  being  established  between  Ferdi- 
nando and  Rita,  their  household  became  a  garden  of 
paradise.  Words  of  prayer  and  kindness  were  con- 
stantly on  the  lips  of  Ferdinando,  instead  of  angry, 
threatening  and  abusive  utterances.  At  home,  he  was 
kindness  itself,  and  showered  every  kind  of  loving  at- 
tention on  Rita;  and  abroad,  he  could  not  find  words 
enough  to  praise  her  virtues  and  worth.  On  her  part 
Rita  was  extremely  happy,  and  was  untiring  in  her 
thanksgiving  to  God,  for  having  aided  in  converting  her 
husband  from  being  a  raging  lion  into  a  faithful  and 
loving  husband  and  as  docile  as  a  lamb.  No  wonder  an 
admiring  world  places  St.  Rita  of  Cascia  side  by  side 
with  St.  iMofiica,  as  the  model  of  Christian  wives. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

God  Blesses  the  Marriage  of  St.  Rita  With  Two 

Beautiful  Children 

CARCELY  had  Rita  begun  to  enjoy  the  fruits 
of  Ferdinando's  conversion,  than  a  new  sorrow 
came  upon  her.  Her  aged  father  and  mother 
died  and  passed  to  their  reward  in  heaven.  Rita  felt 
and  mourned  their  death,  not  only  because  she  loved 
them  with  the  deepest  affection,  but  also  because  she 
considered  them  her  instructors  who  gave  her  the  first 
lessons  in  piety,  and  taught  her  to  walk  in  the  way  of 
Christian  perfection.  But  this  sorrow  was  soon  less- 
ened, for  God,  in  His  mercy  and  goodness,  sent  her  a 
great  blessing  that  filled  her  heart  and  soul  with  glad- 
ness and  joy. 

During  the  several  unhappy  years  that  followed  the 
marriage  of  Ferdinando  and  Rita  Mancini,  years  sig- 
nalized by  the  unchristian  life  and  cruel  conduct  of 
Ferdinando,  and  the  prayers,  tears  and  trials  of  Rita, 
God  had  not  deigned  to  bless  their  union  with  offspring. 
This  great  blessing,  however,  was  not  to  be  denied  to 
Rita,  it  was  only  delayed.  God,  it  would  seem,  was 
waiting  until  she  converted  her  husband  from  his  evil 
ways,  and  made  him  worthy  to  receive  from  His  hands, 
that  gift  which,  to  a  married  couple,  is  the  most  precious 
and  the  most  welcome  of  all  gifts — a  little  child. 

48 


St.  Rita  Blessed  With  Two  Children  49 

That  Rita,  in  her  hours  of  sadness  and  affliction, 
mourned  the  absence  of  a  little  one  to  fondle  and  caress; 
of  a  tiny  baby-mouth  to  kiss;  of  a  little  crib  over  which 
she  could  softly  sing  a  lullaby,  we  are  inclined  to  believe. 
But  this  absence  never  caused  Rita  to  murmur  against 
the  will  of  God ;  on  the  contrary,  it  often  prompted  her 
to  say:  Sia  fatta  la  volunta  di  Dio,  31  ay  the  mil  of 
God  be  done.  This  short  prayer  of  holy  resignation 
was  heard  in  heaven,  and  after  Rita  had  established 
peace  in  her  home  by  winning  Ferdinando  to  a  sense 
of  his  Christian  duties,  God  sent  her  two  beautiful 
children  to  be,  as  it  were,  pledges  that  guaranteed  the 
peace  and  happiness  and  love  of  both  her  husband  and 
herself. 

The  birth  of  their  first  child,  who  received,  at  the 
baptismal  font,  the  name  of  Giovanni,  naturally  filled 
the  hearts  of  Ferdinando  and  Rita  with  joy  and  glad- 
ness, and  many  and  fervent  were  the  thanksgiving 
prayers  that  both  recited  by  the  cradle-side  of  their  little 
son,  whom  God  had  sent  to  bless  their  home.  Espe- 
cially was  Ferdinando  happy,  for  he  saw  in  his  little  son 
Giovanni  the  promise  of  the  preserv^ation  of  his  family 
and  name.  A  name  that  was  an  honorable  one,  though 
he  himself  had  besmirched  it,  time  and  again,  before  he 
had  come  under  the  benign  influence  of  his  saintly  and 
holy  wife. 

As  regards  Rita,  there  was  no  happier  mother  in 
Rocca  Porenna,  and  we  may  say  in  all  Italy.  Her 
heart  now  bestowed  its  love  and  affection  impartially 
on  her  little  son  and  his  father.  And,  no  doubt,  she 
would  have  wished  for  no  more  happiness  in  this  world, 
were  there  not  always  before  her  mind  the  vision  of  a 
cniivcnt  with  its  little  cell,  wherein  she  was  to  find  a 
^lill  greater  happiness,  after  she  had  fulfilled,  accord- 


50  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

ing  to  the  will  of  God,  the  honorable  and  sacred  duties 
of  wife  and  mother. 

With  joy  and  happiness  perfuming,  so  to  speak, 
the  atmosphere  of  her  home,  and  the  white  dove  of  peace 
hovering  around  the  hearth  of  Rita,  we  can  easily  fancy 
what  a  pretty  picture  of  domestic  bliss  Ferdinando  and 
Rita  made,  as  they  sat  by  the  cradle  of  their  httle  son 
vying  in  love  and  affection  for  their  Angioletto,  a  term 
of  endearment  they  were  wont  to  call  their  httle  Gio- 
vanni. When  the  little  Giovanni  was  but  a  few  davs 
more  than  a  month  old,  his  parents  carried  him  to  the 
church,  where  they  offered  him  to  God,  and  asked  God 
to  aid  them  to  bring  him  up  according  to  His  holy  will. 

But  in  the  designs  of  God's  providence,  a  new  happi- 
ness awaited  the  already  happy  Ferdinando  and  Rita, 
and,  in  God's  own  time,  their  happiness  was  duplicated. 
Rita  gave  birth  to  a  second  child,  who  was  baptized 
Paulo.  Like  his  little  brother  Giovanni,  Paulo  was 
offered  to  God,  and  now  Ferdinando  and  Rita  had  four 
little  feet  to  guide  on  the  path  to  heaven  instead  of 
two.  The  education  of  Giovanni  and  Paulo  began  in 
the  lap  of  their  mother,  and,  between  kisses  and  caresses, 
the  first  word  she  taught  them  to  pronounce  was  that 
sweetest  of  all  sweet  names — the  Holy  Name  of  Jesus. 
As  Giovanni  and  Paulo  advanced  in  years,  Rita  taughtj 
them  to  pray,  and  used  every  method  to  prevent  thej 
first  sallies  of  dangerous  passions,  and  impressed  upoi 
their  young  minds,  the  priceless  value  of  humility  aii( 
patience,  those  beautiful  virtues,  of  which  Rita  herseH 
was  a  most  striking  example. 

What  a  beautiful  school  did  not  Rita  establish,  an( 
what  an  excellent  course  of  studies  did  she  not  plan  foi 
the  education  of  her  two  sons !     Without  neglecting  t( 


St.  Rita  Blessed  With  Two  Children  51 

instruct  them  in  profane  knowledge,  she  paid  particular 
attention  to  educate  them  in  the  science  of  salvation. 
Ferdinando  aided  also  in  the  education  of  his  sons  by 
setting  them  good  examples,  for  he  had  also  been  taught 
by  Rita,  that  good  example  is  like  an  inheritance  given 
by  a  parent  to  a  son,  an  almost  infallible  means  of  con- 
veying the  virtues  of  one  to  the  other. 

As  a  result  of  Rita's  teaching,  she,  v^ho  began  to  be 
a  saint  from  the  very  moment  of  her  Baptism,  made 
saints  of  her  children.  She  and  her  husband  had  the 
happiness  to  see  Giovanni  and  Paulo  grow  up  to  be 
young  boys,  truthful,  obedient  and  respectful,  indiffer- 
ent to  the  things  of  the  world,  with  the  greatest  ardor 
for  virtue,  the  greatest  love  for  God,  fear  of  His  judg- 
ments and  dread  of  sin.  What  a  happy  and  holy  world 
it  would  be,  if  there  were  more  mothers  like  St.  Rita 
of  Cascia. 


CHAPTER  X. 

The  Virtues  That  St.  Rita  Peacticed  Dueing  Hei 

Married  Life 

T.  RITA  demonstrated  clearly,  during  the  whole 
course  of  her  married  life,  that  the  practice  of 
virtue  is  not  incompatible  with  the  holy  state  of 
matrimony.  St.  Rita  did  more.  She  practiced,  to  a 
high  degree,  those  virtues  that  shine  most  resplendent 
in  the  higher  state  of  life,  and  what  is  most  surprising, 
she  practiced  them  without  experiencing  the  least  ob- 
stacle in  doing  so.  The  secret  of  St.  Rita's  facility  in 
the  practice  of  virtue  was,  she  kept  herself  at  all  times 
and  in  all  places  in  the  grace  and  presence  of  God. 
She  was  all  for  God,  and  everything  she  said  or  did 
was  for  the  honor  and  glory  of  God.  Hence  the  more 
urgent  were  the  obligations  of  her  state  of  life,  the 
more  she  felt  herself  disposed  to  the  practice  of  virtue ; 
for  she  judged  that  she  would  not  be  sufficiently  grate- 
ful for  all  the  graces  and  favors  He  had  bestowed  upon 
her,  if,  besides  practicing  the  virtues  peculiar  to  the 
marriage  state,  she  did  not  practice  those  which  be- 
longed to  the  higher  state. 

St.  Rita  was  indeed  well  prepared  to  practice  any 
and  every  virtue,  for  the  lamp  of  her  soul  was  filled 
with  the  oil  of  good  works,  after  the  manner  of  the 
lamps  of  the  prudent  virgins  made  mention  of  in  the 

52 


Virtues  Practiced  During  Her  Married  Life      53 

Gospel,  and  she  was  in  no  way  inferior  to  them.  The 
miraculous  incorruptibility  of  her  body  and  the  sweet 
odor  which  it  exhales  even  to  this  day,  plainly  tell  us,  that 
St.  Rita  did  not  lose  any  of  the  reward  that  God  gives 
to  virgins,  though  she,  by  virtue  of  obedience  to  the 
wishes  of  her  parents  and  guided  by  the  will  of  God, 
did  embrace  the  married  state. 

In  this  chapter  we  will  only  speak  of  a  few  of  the 
virtues  which  St.  Rita  practiced  during  her  married  life. 
To  say  even  a  few  words  of  the  many  virtues  she  pos- 
sessed would  require  a  volume  by  itself.  For  her  soul 
was  endowed  with  as  many  virtues,  and  clothed  and 
decked  with  as  many  ornaments  of  grace,  as  that  woman 
of  strength  and  beauty,  whose  picture  has  been  painted 
by  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  of  which  picture  St.  Rita  is  a 
faithful  copy. 

Our  saint  was,  as  it  were,  a  fragrant  rose,  who  pre- 
served, amidst  the  thorns  of  penance,  her  conjugal 
chastity.  Although  she  never  committed  a  grievous 
fault,  she  punished  her  innocent  body  with  the  discipline, 
and  kept  it  under  the  complete  control  of  the  spirit,  by 
continual  fastings.  Not  content  with  oberv^ing  the  fast 
of  Lent  and  the  other  fast  days  prescribed  by  Holy 
Mother  Church,  she  observed  two  other  Lents  during 
the  year  and  took  only  bread  and  water  on  the  vigils 
of  the  feasts  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  ]Mary.  Here  we 
must  observe,  though  St.  Rita  mortified  herself  most 
rigorously,  she  did  it  so  judiciously  that  her  husband  and 
the  other  members  of  her  household  scarcely  obsei'ved  it. 
God  wrought  in  her  the  same  miracle  He  wrought  in 
favor  of  the  Hebrew  youths  at  the  court  of  Babylon, 
who  grew  more  beautiful  because  tliey  fasted  and  ab- 
stained; for  the  more  St.  Rita  fasted  and  punished  her 
body  by  penance,  the  more  beautiful  and  graceful  she 


54  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

became.  But  though  everyone  admired  the  marvellous 
beauty  and  grace  of  St.  Rita,  she  was  more  admired  for 
the  beauty  of  her  soul  which  was  weD  known  to  every 
one  in  Rocca  Porrena,  by  reason  of  her  edifying  life, 
and  on  account  of  the  numberless  good  works  she  per- 
formed. 

In  her  intercourse  with  her  neighbors,  St.  Rita  was 
most  affable,  and  in  her  conversations  she  never  uttered 
a  word  that  could  in  any  way  offend.  And  when  she 
heard  any  one  speak  ill  of  a  neighbor,  she  reproved 
mildly  the  speaker,  either  by  defending  the  character  of 
the  absent  one,  or  artfully  changing  the  subject  of  con- 
versation. Many  and  many  were  the  persons  who  came 
to  her  for  advice  and  consolation  in  their  trials  and 
troubles,  and  no  one  ever  regretted  their  coming.  And 
when  any  of  the  wives  of  the  neighborhood  complained 
to  her  of  the  cruelty  of  their  husbands,  she,  who  had 
suffered  many  years  of  cruelty,  was  accustomed,  like 
another  Monica,  to  say  to  them :  Lay  the  blame  rather 
on  yourselves  and  your  tongues, 

St.  Rita  was  also  an  Apostle  of  true  charity.  As 
every  virtue  is  weighed  by  the  scales  of  charity  which 
gives  to  it  the  gold  of  worth  and  merit,  we  find  in  the 
heart  of  St.  Rita,  a  rich  mine  of  charity  towards  God 
and  towards  her  neighbor.  Of  her  love  for  Gk>d  there 
can  be  no  doubt.  St.  Rita  was  all  love,  the  love  of  God 
consumed  her  and  for  love  of  God,  there  was  nothing 
she  could  do  for  her  neighbor  that  she  did  not  do.  She 
visited  the  sick,  nursed  them  and  prepared  their  medi- 
cines. She  distributed  bread  and  clothing  among  the 
needy  poor,  and,  on  one  occasion,  in  imitation  of  St. 
Martin  of  Tours,  she  gave  half  of  her  cloak  to  a  poor 
person  whom  she  met  on  the  street,  half-naked  and 
trembling  with  the  cold.     In  a  few  words,  we  may  say. 


Virtues  Practiced  During  Her  Married  Life      55 

that  no  poor  person  in  Rocca  Porrena  wanted  anything 
if  it  were  known  to  St.  Rita. 

Besides  practicing  the  corporal  works  of  mercy,  St. 
Rita,  like  a  true  Apostle,  employed  much  of  her  time 
in  caring  for  the  spiritual  wants  of  her  neighbors.  She 
approached  those  whom  she  knew  to  be  careless  in  the 
performance  of  their  religious  duties,  and  persuaded 
them  to  mend  their  ways  and  become  fervent  Christians. 
In  her  frequent  visits  to  the  sick,  she  consoled  them  with 
soothing  and  holy  words ;  exhorted  them  to  patience  and 
resignation;  and  it  is  among  the  traditions  of  Rocca 
Porrena,  that  St.  Rita  restored  many  sick  persons  to 
health,  by  reciting  one  single  "Hail  Mary"  by  their 
bedsides.  The  disconsolate  and  the  afflicted  came  also 
under  the  care  of  her  apostolic  zeal,  and  her  advice  to 
all  wiiom  she  consoled  and  comforted  was  ever  the  same : 
"Place  all  the  weight  of  your  trials  and  tribulations  on 
the  shoulders  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  w^ill  carry  them  for 
you.  Remember  He  once  carried  a  heavy  cross."  And 
finally,  St.  Rita  dissolved  enmities  and  hatred  that 
existed  among  her  neighbors,  as  did  her  father  and 
mother  when  they  were  the  Peace-makers  of  Rocca  Por- 
rena. Her  earnest  words  of  burning  zeal  penetrated 
wrathful  hearts,  quenched  the  blazing  fires  of  hatred  and 
revenge,  and  made  enemies  kiss  and  embrace. 

Her  numerous  acts  of  charity,  or  the  time  spent  in 
visiting  the  sick  and  the  poor,  did  not,  in  the  least,  inter- 
fere with  the  care  or  government  of  her  household,  nor 
with  her  own  private  devotions.  Besides  saying  the 
morning  and  night  prayers  which  she  had  learned  at  the 
knees  of  her  pious  mother  Amata,  St.  Rita  meditated 
every  day  on  the  principal  mysteries  of  our  holy  faith, 
but  her  favorite  meditation  was  the  Passion  of  Jesus 
Christ.     Many  times  while  meditating  this  great  mys- 


56  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

tery,  she  would  fall  into  a  trance,  and  on  recovering  her 
senses,  it  would  seem  as  if  she  had  been  suffering  a 
mysterious  martyrdom  in  the  interior  of  her  soul.  She 
also  was  very  devout  to  Jesus  in  the  Blessed  Sacrament, 
and  made  as  many  visits  as  possible  to  her  parish-church. 
For  she  dearly  loved  to  be  near  that  fire  of  divine  love, 
and  never  wished  to  leave  it.  Finally  that  she  might 
have  protectors  on  earth,  as  well  as  powerful  advocates 
in  heaven,  she  was  a  devout  servant  of  the  Blessed  Vir- 
gin Mary,  and  a  fervent  client  of  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
St.  Augustine  and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine.  Truly 
may  we  say,  without  detracting  from  the  many  women 
who  are  now  saints  in  heaven,  there  is  none  more  glori- 
ous than  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Death  of  Ferdinando — Sorrow  of  St.  Rita 

T.  RITA,  before  and  especially  after  her  mar- 
riage, had  made  a  honey-comb  of  her  heart,  so 
to  speak,  filled  with  the  odor  and  sweetness  of 
rirtues.  Each  virtue  represented,  as  it  were,  a  beau- 
tiful and  fragrant  flower,  bound  together  by  the  girdle 
or  cincture  of  charity,  and  formed  the  most  exquisite 
bouquet  she  could  offer  to  her  divine  Lord  after  she 
had  calmed  the  boisterous  winds  that  had  howled  threat- 
eningly around  her,  during  the  time  her  husband  was 
an  easy  prey  to  the  ungovernable  impulses  of  his  violent 
passions.  But  alas,  the  days  of  harmony  and  peace 
were  soon  to  be  followed  by  a  tragedy  that  was  to 
cause  grief  and  sorrow  in  the  heart  of  St.  Rita. 

Though  St.  Rita  had  reformed  her  husband  and 
had  also  made  him  a  man  of  peace,  Ferdinando  had  not 
a  few  enemies  in  Rocca  Porrena.  Before  his  marriage, 
and  for  some  years  after,  he  had  engaged  in  many  dis- 
putes and  contentions  with  companions  as  hot-headed 
and  impulsive  as  himself,  but  as  he  was  ready  and  adept 
with  the  stiletto  or  dagger,  he  was  generally  tlie  victor 
over  his  adversaries.  These  persons  became  Ferdinan- 
do's  enemies;  a  poisonous  hatred  rankled  in  their 
breasts,  and  though  he  avoided  their  company,  they 
sought  the  occasion  to  avenge  themselves.     His  enemies, 

57 


58  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Casda 

not  daring  to  encounter  him  singly,  banded  together,  as 
cowards  generally  do,  and  meeting  him,  one  day,  out- 
side of  the  walls  of  Rocca  Porrena,  attacked  him, 
stabbed  him  to  death,  and  left  his  lifeless  body,  lying  by 
the  roadside,  bleeding  from  a  dozen  wounds. 

Some  historians  say  that  Ferdinando  was  not  mur- 
dered in  cold  blood,  as  the  saying  is.  They  claim  that 
he  himself,  in  a  fit  of  anger,  provoked  the  quarrel  and 
even  struck  the  first  blow  of  the  altercation  in  which 
he  lost  his  Hfe.  Others  say  that  the  violent  death  of 
Ferdinando  was  a  visitation  from  God,  in  punishment 
for  his  extreme  cruelty  to  St.  Rita  during  the  early  age 
of  his  marriage,  but  that  we  may  piously  believe,  though 
he  did  not  have  the  sweet  consolation  of  receiving  the 
last  Sacraments,  that  God  had  mercy  on  his  soul,  on 
account  of  the  ocean  of  merits  which  his  holy  wife  had 
treasured  in  heaven. 

When  the  news  of  the  death  of  Ferdinando  and  all 
the  circumstances  connected  with  it  reached  the  ears  of 
St.  Rita,  she  was  thrown  into  a  paroxysm  of  grief.  She 
wept  as  if  her  heart  were  breaking,  and  though  her 
friends  and  kind  neighbors  tried,  as  best  they  could, 
to  console  her,  she  would  not  be  consoled.  Naturally, 
St.  Rita  felt,  as  every  good  and  holy  wife  must  feel, 
the  sudden  taking  away  of  her  husband.  But  what 
grieved  her  heart  and  soul  most  was  that  he  passed 
from  this  life  to  the  other  without  being  fortified  with 
that  viaticum,  which  gives  the  dying  Christian  the  happy 
assurance  of  a  safe  journey  from  time  to  eternity.  In 
her  grief  and  sorrow,  St.  Rita  prayed  to  God  from  the 
altar  of  her  heart  and  said  to  Him:  "O  God,  enter  not 
into  judgment  with  thy  servant  Ferdinando,  for  in  thy 
sight  no  one  will  be  justified."  She  also  prayed  to  Je- 
sus, her  divine  Lord  and  Master,  the  Judge  of  the  liv- 


Death  of  Ferdinando — Sorrow  of  St,  Rita       59 

ing  and  the  dead,  and  implored  Him  to  grant  that  His 
precious  Blood,  shed  for  the  redemption  of  mankind, 
was  not  shed  in  vain  for  the  soul  of  her  husband,  Ferdi- 
nando. And  out  from  the  grief-laden  heart  of  that 
sorrowful  widow  came  so  loud  and  plaintive  a  cry  for 
the  pardon  of  her  husband's  faults  and  failings,  that 
the  cry  must  have  been  heard  in  heaven,  and,  as  it  pen- 
etrated the  bowels  of  God's  love,  it  moved  Him  to 
mercy.  Nor  did  St.  Rita,  in  the  Gethsemane  of  her 
grief  and  sorrow,  forget  to  have  recourse  to  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  the  mother  of  the  seven  Dolors,  the  sweet  Com- 
fortress  of  the  afflicted,  to  whom,  according  to  the  great 
St.  Bernard,  no  one  ever  has  recourse  in  vain. 

When  the  dead  and  bleeding  body  of  her  husband 
was  brought  home,  St.  Rita,  with  more  reason  than  the 
Patriarch  Jacob  who  looked  upon  the  blood-stained 
tunic  of  his  beloved  son  Joseph,  again  gave  full  vent  to 
her  grief  and  sorrow,  with  sobs  and  sighs,  followed  by 
a  torrent  of  tears.  And  then,  all  of  a  sudden,  as  if 
a  whisper  from  heaven  had  reached  her  ears,  in  the 
twinkling  of  an  eye,  her  sobs  and  sighs  lost  their  voices, 
the  fountains  of  her  tears  became  dry,  and,  arming  her- 
self with  a  resignation  like  to  that  of  Jacob,  her  heart 
and  soul  praised  the  name  of  the  Lord,  who  was  pleased 
to  take  to  Himself  the  husband  whom  He  had  given 
her  at  the  foot  of  His  altar.  O  strong  and  valiant 
woman,  where  can  we  find  your  equal !  To  what  can  we 
compare  you?  You  who  bore  with  admirable  patience 
the  excessive  grief  and  poignant  sorrow  which  pen- 
etrated every  fiber  of  your  loving  heart  as  you  gazed 
upon  the  bleeding  remains  of  him  wliom  the  bonds  of 
matrimony  had  made  a  part  of  your  life. 

Not  satisfied  with  that  act  of  resignation  to  the  will 
of  God,  who  saw  in  the  crucible  of  her  patience  the 


60  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

carats  of  the  gold  of  her  fortitude,  she  adorned  and  em- 
bellished her  resignation  with  the  most  precious  stone  of 
pardon;  for,  in  imitation  of  Jesus  Christ,  who,  when 
dying  on  the  wood  of  the  Cross,  asked  His  heavenly 
Father  to  pardon  His  executioners,  so  also  did  St.  Rita 
plead  for  the  murderers  of  her  husband.  She  herself 
pardoned  them  from  the  bottom  of  her  heart,  thus  put- 
ting into  practice  that  holy  doctrine  which  Jesus  Christ 
taught  from  the  pulpit  of  the  Cross. 

After  the  funeral  ceremonies  were  over,  and  the 
mortal  remains  of  her  husband  were  placed  in  the 
cemetery  of  Rocca  Porrena,  St.  Rita  continued  the  exer- 
cise of  those  virtues  which  she  had  already  been  in  the 
habit  of  practicing,  and  free  from  many  of  the  cares  of 
her  married  life,  she  determined  to  live  solely  for  God, 
the  only  Lord  and  Master  of  her  soul. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

St.  Rita  Makes  a  Sacrifice  of  the  Lives  of  Her 

Two  Sons  to  God 

^Jf  HE  DEATH  of  her  husband,  Ferdinando,  made 
i|L  St.  Rita  a  widow,  but  she  was  not  left  alone. 
^^  God  had  blessed  her,  as  we  have  already  observed, 
with  two  handsome  sons  who  were  now  grown  up,  and 
on  these  she  centered  her  utmost  care  and  attention. 
She  daily  implored  God,  with  the  most  fervent  prayers, 
to  preserve  their  innocence,  and  aid  her  to  guide  them 
in  the  path  of  His  holy  law  in  which  she  had  instructed 
them.  Giovanni  and  Paulo,  the  children  of  St.  Rita, 
became  what  their  saintly  mother  moulded  them.  They 
grew  up  God-loving  and  God-fearing  children.  They 
loved  their  good  mother  with  all  the  fulness  of  their 
boyish  hearts,  and  no  boys  could  be  more  respectful 
or  obedient  to  a  mother  than  were  Giovanni  and  Paulo. 

As  they  advanced  in  years,  St.  Rita,  with  the  quick 
perception  of  a  mother,  noticed  that  a  change  was  tak- 
ing place  in  the  characters  of  her  sons,  and  that  some- 
times, not  unlike  their  departed  father,  they  appeared 
to  be  sullen,  morose  and  irritable.  Especially,  did  she 
obsen^e  a  notable  change  in  Giovanni,  who  was  scarcely 
sixteen  years  of  age.  Young  as  they  were,  and  even 
in  spite  of  the  religious  training  they  had  received  from 
their  mother,  Giovanni  and  Paulo  had  become  some- 

61 


62  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

what  imbued  with  that  false  idea  of  honor  and  justice 
which  made  it  incumbent  on  the  nearest  of  kin  to  exe- 
cute vengeance  on  the  slayer  of  a  relative.  This  crim- 
inal and  unauthorized  right  of  revenge  was  much  in 
vogue  in  Italy,  at  the  time  St.  Rita  lived,  and  was 
called:  La  Vendetta, 

Though  St.  Rita  had  observed,  that,  from  time  to 
time,  her  sons  made  remarks  relative  to  the  murder  of 
their  father,  it  never  entered  her  mind,  that  they  had 
any  thought  of  avenging  his  death.  One  day,  however, 
from  a  conversation  she  overheard  between  her  two  sons, 
she  learned,  to  her  great  surprise  and  sorrow,  that  they 
were  incHned  to  revenge  the  assassination  of  their  father. 

Like  the  good  and  saintly  mother  she  was,  St.  Rita 
determined  to  destroy  and  stifle  so  heinous  and  criminal 
a  desire.  Sunmioning  Giovanni  and  Paulo  to  her  side, 
she  told  them  what  she  had  heard,  and  begged  them, 
with  tears  and  supplications,  to  erase  from  their  minds 
all  desire  of  revenge,  and  to  forget  that  their  father  was 
assassinated.  She  also  placed  before  their  eyes  the 
example  of  Christ,  who  asked  pardon  for  those  who  had 
crucified  Him  and  for  whom  He  suffered  to  give  them 
eternal  life.  By  means  of  this  beautiful  example,  she 
sincerely  hoped  she  would  be  able  to  persuade  her  sons 
to  pardon  the  murderers  of  their  father.  She  further- 
more reminded  them,  that  though  they  had  lost  their 
earthly  father,  they  would  gain  a  heavenly  one  if  they 
would  pardon  from  their  hearts.  And  finally  she  rep- 
resented to  them  the  terrible  sin  the  homicide  commits, 
and  plainly  told  them  that  they  themselves  would  be 
murderers,  if  they  avenged  the  death  of  their  father. 

In  this  manner  did  St.  Rita  try  to  keep  and  guide 
her  sons  in  the  path  of  the  fear  of  God.  After  some 
time,  as  we  may  read  in  the  Decree  of  her  Canonization, 


St,  Rita  Sacrifices  the  Lives  of  Her  Sons  to  God  68 

when  she  saw  her  sons  persist  in  their  desire  for  ven- 
geance, she  fled  to  the  crucifix  and  related  the  whole 
affair  to  Christ,  fervently  beseeching  Him,  either  to 
change  the  desires  of  her  sons,  or  no  longer  spare  their 
lives.  God  heard  the  prayer  of  St.  Rita.  Both  her 
sons  died  within  a  year,  well  prepared  to  go  before  the 
judgment-seat  of  Almighty  God. 

O  glorious  St.  Rita!  The  fame  of  your  sacrifice 
will  never  die.  The  pages  of  history  make  mention  of 
no  sacrifice  more  generous  than  your  sacrifice.  It  is 
true  Abraham  was  willing  to  sacrifice  his  son  Isaac, 
but  he  w^as  commanded  by  Almighty  God  to  do  so. 
Your  sacrifice  was  an  exact  copy  of  the  sacrifice  which 
the  Eternal  Father  made  of  His  only  Son  on  the  Cross; 
for  you,  not  satisfied  with  pardoning  the  murderers  of 
your  husband,  even  saved  their  Ir/es,  by  offering  to  God 
the  sacrifice  of  the  lives  of  your  two  beloved  sons,  Gio- 
vanni and  Paulo. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

The   Penitentiai.   Life   of    St.  Rita  After  the 

Death  of  Hee  Two  Sons 

T.  RITA  was  now  alone  in  the  world.  She  was 
both  widow  and  orphan.  The  bodies  of  her  hus- 
band and  two  sons  were  lying,  side  by  side,  in  the 
cemetery  of  Rocca  Porrena,  and  her  aged  parents,  An- 
tonio and  Amata,  had  gone  to  their  reward,  though  we 
do  not  know  the  exact  time  of  their  death.  Free,  there- 
fore, from  all  the  ties  that  had  hitherto  bound  her  to 
the  world,  St.  Rita  resolved  to  live  solely  for  God,  and 
to  spend  her  time  wholly  occupied  in  the  service  of  God. 
Accordingly,  she  spent  a  goodly  part  of  her  time  in  a 
retired  part  of  the  church,  praying  with  ardent  devo- 
tion and  recollection,  and  never  ceased  to  give  thanks  to 
God,  for  all  the  graces  and  favours  He  had  bestowed 
upon  her,  during  the  whole  course  of  her  life.  And 
because  she  hoped  that  God  would  lead  her,  one  day, 
into  that  other  state  of  life  to  which  she  aspired,  even 
from  the  days  of  her  early  girlhood,  she  again  offered 
herself,  body  and  soul  to  God,  renouncing  forever,  for 
the  love  of  God,  all  the  joys  and  pleasures  the  world 
might  offer  her. 

With  her  heart  thus  filled  with  the  fire  of  divine  love, 
one  day,  St.  Rita  happened  to  be  in  church  hstening  to 
a  sermon.     In  the  course  of  his  preaching,  the  priest 

64 


St.  Ritas  Life  After  the  Death  of  Her  Sons       65 

had  occasion  to  quote  the  words  of  Christ:     If  thou 
wilt  be  perfect,  go  sell  what  thou  hast  and  give  to  the 
poor  and  come,  follow  me,     St.  Rita  considered  these 
words  a  special  invitation  from  Jesus  Christ,  and  re- 
solved to  obey  the  divine  summons,  and  put  into  prac- 
tice the  evangelical  counsel,  by  renouncing  all  her  tem- 
poral goods  and  enter  some  religious  house,  wherein  she 
could  follow,  day  by  day,  her  divine  Spouse  and  Master 
Jesus  Christ  until  the  end  of  her  life.     From  that  day 
forward,  St.  Rita  added  new  fasts  to  the  many  she  was 
already  wont  to  observe,  and  increased  the  number  and 
rigor  of  her  penances.     She  now  fasted  on  the  vigils  of 
the  feasts  of  her  special  patrons,  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
St.  Augustine,  and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine.     And  she 
daily  solicited  their  aid  and  assistance,  to  help  her  to 
fit  herself  for  the  religious  state  to  which  she  aspired. 
After  the  death  of  her  husband,  she  put  on  a  garment  of 
hair-cloth,  and  repeatedly  punished  her  delicate  body 
with  a  discipline,  and  in  imitation  of  the  holy  widow 
Judith,  she  lived  a  most  retired  life.     So  strong  and 
vehement  was  St.  Rita's  desire  to  separate  herself  from 
all  contact  with  the  world,  that  she  actually,  so  to  speak, 
turned  her  house  into  a  holy  prison.     She  closed  all  the 
windows  of  her  home,  except  one  near  the  door,  and  a 
little  one  in  the  roof,  through  which  she  could  look  up 
to  heaven.     She  never  left  her  home  unless  to  go  to 
church,  or  to  visit  the  sick,  or  to  perform  works  of 
charity  among  her  poor  and  needy  neighbors.     Tliere  is 
near  the  house  in  which  St.  Rita  lived,  a  very  high  reef, 
called  the  Reef  of  Rocca  Porrena.     Concerning  this 
reef,  it  is  tradition,  that  St.  Rita  climl)ed,  many  times, 
to  the  topmost  part  of  this  reef  to  be  nearer  to  heaven, 
and  that  she  s])ent  many  hours  there  in  prayer  and 
meditation.     Words  fail  to  tell  the  true  story  of  the 


66  Life  of  Sister  St  Rita  of  Casda 

penitential  and  retired  life  of  St.  Rita  after  the  death 
of  her  two  sons.  She  spent  most  of  her  time  praying, 
conversing  with  her  beloved  Jesus,  asking  Him  contin- 
ually to  admit  her  among  the  virgins  who  served  Him 
within  the  sacred  and  holy  walls  of  the  cloister. 

Many  and  many  a  time  did  she  say  to  Jesus:  "O 
my  dear  Lord  and  Master.  Since  I  am  free  now,  when 
will  the  time  come,  when  you  will  admit  me  into  the 
haven  of  rehgion?"  Seeing,  however,  that  her  divine 
Lover  did  not  give  a  quick  response  to  her  prayers,  she 
wept  bitterly,  thinking  that  her  divine  Master  would 
not  open  to  her  the  doors  of  the  cloister,  because  there 
was  something  wanting  in  her  love  and  affection  towards 
Him. 

In  those  times  of  affliction,  a  few  moments  medita- 
tion on  the  abandomnent  of  Jesus,  by  His  eternal 
Father,  as  He  hung  dying  on  the  Cross  of  Calvary, 
consoled  her,  and  she  would  say  to  herself:  "My  loving 
Saviour  drunk  to  the  very  dregs  the  bitter  cup  of  aban- 
donment, to  animate  and  teach  that  all  who  would  walk 
on  the  sorrowful  way  of  the  Cross,  must,  at  least,  taste 
of  one  drop  of  His  bitter  chalice." 

Thus  consoled,  St.  Rita  would  renew  her  supplica- 
tions to  Jesus,  asking  Him,  again  and  again,  to  open 
to  her  the  doors  of  the  cloister ;  for  St.  Rita  had  made 
up  her  mind  to  continue  knocking  at  the  door  of  the 
Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus,  until  she  w^ould  hear  His  sweet 
voice  saying  to  her:  "Arise,  Rita,  make  haste  my  be- 
loved spouse,  and  come," 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

St.  Rita  Applies  for  Admission  to  the  Convent. 

Her  Request  is  Refused 

AS  WE  already  know,  St.  Rita  was  extremely 
anxious  to  embrace  the  religious  state  of  life, 
and  since  she  had  a  particular  devotion  to  the 
great  St.  Augustine  and  his  spiritual  son,  St.  Nicholas 
of  Tolentine,  she  desired  to  become  a  spiritual  daughter 
of  the  saint  by  joining  a  community  of  nuns  that  was 
governed  and  guided  by  the  same  rule  which  St. 
Augustine  gave  to  the  community  of  religious  he 
founded  when  he  was  Bishop  of  Hippo,  in  Africa.  At 
the  time  St.  Rita  lived  in  Rocca  Porrena,  there  were 
two  communities  of  Augustinian  nuns  in  Cascia.  One 
community  resided  in  the  convent  known  by  the  name, 
St.  Mary  Magdalen,  or  the  Maddalena;  the  other  was 
named  after  St.  Lucy,  the  ISIartyr.  When  these  con- 
vents were  founded  we  do  not  know,  but  we  do  know 
that  in  tlie  year  of  our  Lord  1329,  the  Bishop  of  Spoleto 
granted  certain  privileges  to  the  community  of  the  con- 
vent of  St.  Lucy. 

St.  Rita  knew  that  in  ])oth  of  those  convents  the 
nuns  served  God  to  their  hearts'  content,  and  burning 
with  those  desires  which  were  kindled  in  her  heart  when 
she  was  but  a  child,  she  became  more  anxious  tlian  ever 
to  become  a  nun  and  follow  tlie  Lamb  whithersoever  He 

67 


68  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

goeth.  Sometimes  St.  Rita  made  the  journey  from 
Rocca  Porrena  to  Cascia.  On  those  occasions,  which, 
in  fact,  were  pious  pilgramages,  her  guardian  angel  al- 
ways guided  her  steps  into  the  church  attached  to  the 
Maddalena  convent,  where  she  prayed  and  meditated 
until  it  was  time  to  return  home. 

One  day  while  she  knelt  in  the  little  oratory  of  her 
house,  her  eyes  fixed  on  the  crucifix,  speaking  to  Jesus 
and  teUing  Him  how  anxious  she  was  to  enter  the  clois- 
ter and  become  a  nun,  a  ray  of  divine  consolation  pene- 
trated her  heart  and  soul.  St.  Rita  arose  from  her 
kneeling  posture,  and  prepared  to  go  to  Cascia.  Once 
on  the  highway,  that  ray  of  divine  consolation  gave 
haste  to  her  footsteps  which  brought  her  direct  to  the 
very  door  of  the  convent  of  the  Maddalena.  With  a 
trembhng  hand  she  knocked  at  the  convent  door,  and 
in  answer  to  her  call,  the  door  was  opened  by  the  sister- 
portress,  who,  learning  that  St.  Rita  desired  to  speak 
with  the  prioress,  politely  ushered  her  into  the  guest- 
chamber.  When  the  prioress,  a  sweet-faced  venerable 
nun,  came,  St.  Rita  made  known,  in  as  few  words  as 
possible,  the  object  of  her  visit. 

She  told  the  prioress  that  from  the  time  she  was  a 
child,  she  had  desired  to  consecrate  her  virginity  to 
God.  That  she  would  have  done  so  had  not  obedience 
to  her  parents  prevented  her,  but  being  free  now,  she 
coveted  the  Augustinian  habit,  so  that  she  might  better 
serve  the  Lord,  though  she  recognized  she  was  unworthy 
to  become  a  spiritual  daughter  of  the  great  and  glorious 
St.  Augustine.  The  prioress  listened  with  attention  to 
the  humble  but  earnest  petition  of  St.  Rita  to  be  ad- 
mitted into  the  community,  and  kindly  told  her  that  she 
would  present  her  application  for  membership  before 
a  Chapter  Meeting  of  the  nuns  of  the  community.     We 


Applies  to  the  Convent;  Admission  Refused      69 

must  observe  here,  that  it  is  a  rule  of  the  Augustinian 
Institute  of  nuns,  not  to  admit  to  their  communities  any 
but  young  girls,  whose  vocations  are  certain,  though 
widows  may  also  be  admitted,  but  only  by  special  dis- 
pensation. 

We  must,  therefore,  not  be  surprised  that  the  nuns 
of  the  Maddalena  Convent  of  Cascia,  refused  to  admit 
St.  Rita  into  the  community,  and,  indeed,  a  majority 
of  the  nuns  hinted,  that,  sin<!e  no  widow  had  been  re- 
ceived into  the  convent  from  the  time  of  its  foundation, 
it  would  be  a  blot  on  the  Maddalena  were  they  to  admit 
St.  llita  as  a  member  of  the  community,  though  they 
knew  her  to  be  a  person  of  the  most  irreproachable  char- 
acter and  possessed  even  of  eminent  piety  and  sanctity. 

When  the  prioress  of  the  convent  told  St.  Rita  that 
the  nuns  had,  in  public  chapter,  voted  against  admitting 
her  as  a  member  of  the  community,  she  received  the 
news  with  a  calm  exterior,  though  in  her  heart  she  was 
very  much  disappointed.  Instead  of  returning  to 
Rocca  Porrena,  St.  Rita  remained  in  Cascia  in  the 
house  of  a  friend,  and,  after  a  short  lapse  of  time,  made 
.  a  second  apiDlication  only  to  receive  a  second  refusal. 
She  applied  a  third  time,  and  most  eloquently  besought 
the  nuns  to  admit  her  into  their  community,  even  as 
a  servant,  alleging  that  she  did  not  consider  herself  a 
worthy  companion  of  the  spouses  of  Jesus  Christ.  Her 
pleading  was  all  in  vain,  and  because  God  wished  to 
try  further  the  patience  of  Rita,  He  permitted  the  nuns 
to  remain  firm  in  their  decision,  and  thus  St.  Rita  was 
told  for  the  third  time  bj'  the  prioress  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  admit  her  as  a  member  of  the  community,  and 
that  she  should  cease  further  importunities. 

When  the  door  of  the  Maddalena  was  closed  against 


70  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

her,  St.  Rita  returned  to  Rocca  Porrena,  judging  that 
the  time  had  not  yet  arrived  for  her  to  obtain  that  hap- 
piness to  which  she  aspired.  Yet  deep  down  in  her 
heart,  she  felt  that  God  would  soon  come  to  her  aid, 
and,  by  His  omnipotence,  help  her  to  overcome  what 
the  prioress  of  the  Maddalena  Convent  has  said  was 
impossible. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

St.  Rita  Enters  the  Maddaeena  Convent  in  a 

Miraculous  Manner 


^jfj^HEN  St.  Rita  returned  to  Rocca  Porrena 
rW  from  Cascia,  she  began  what  proved  to  be  her 
**^  first  successful  trial  against  the  impossible. 
With  the  words  of  the  prioress  of  the  Maddalena  ring- 
ing in  her  ears:  "My  dear  woman,  it  is  impossible  for 
you  to  become  a  member  of  our  community,"  St.  Rita 
determined  to  use  every  holy  means  to  make  possible 
what  human  lips  had  told  her  was  impossible.  With 
this  determination  dominant  in  her  mind,  St.  Rita  spent 
nearly  all  her  days,  and  a  goodly  portion  of  her  nights, 
supphcating  her  beloved  Jesus  to  shorten  the  time  of 
her  anxiety,  and  admit  her  as  one  of  His  brides  within 
the  enclosed  walls  of  the  cloister.  Not  content  with 
importuning  Jesus  with  the  most  fervent  prayers  and 
exercises  of  penance  and  mortification,  St.  Rita  also 
implored  the  aid  of  her  patrons  St.  John  the  Baptist, 
St.  Augustine,  and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine,  firmly 
believing,  that  through  their  powerful  intercession,  God 
would  hasten  the  fulfillment  of  the  only  desire  her  heart 
sought  in  this  world.  St.  Rita  was  not  disappointed  in 
her  confidence  and  hope,  and  she,  who  preferred  to  be 
the  lowliest  among  the  brides  of  Christ  than  to  be  the 
most  honored  of  the  highest  ones  of  the  earth,  was  soon 

71 


72  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

to  taste  that  happiness  she  had  sought,  from  the  time 
she  was  but  a  little  girl.  Yea,  the  time  had  come,  when 
St.  Rita  was  to  make  her  entrance  into  the  cloister  in 
a  most  miraculous  manner. 

One  night  while  engaged  in  prayer  and  meditation, 
she  heard  a  loud  knock  at  the  door  of  her  house  and  a 
voice  which  called:  "Rita!  Rita!"  As  the  hour  was 
late,  naturall}^  a  slight  feeling  of  fear  overcame  her  for 
a  moment,  but  a  whispered  prayer  to  heaven  gave  her 
the  courage  to  approach  the  window,  which  she  opened 
and  glanced  out  to  ascertain  who  called  her.  Seeing  no 
one  at  the  door,  St.  Rita  thought  that  what  she  heard 
might  have  been  an  illusion  or  perhaps  a  ruse  of  the 
Evil  one  to  divert  her  from  her  prayers.  Signing  her- 
self with  the  sign  of  the  Cross  she  resumed  her  prayers 
with  a  redoubled  fervor.  Again  she  was  interrupted  in 
her  prayers  by  the  same  voice  which  said:  "Rita!  Rita! 
Fear  not.  God  will  admit  you  into  the  cloister  as  His 
spouse." 

This  time  St.  Rita  understood  the  true  meaning  of 
the  double  call  that  had  fallen  on  her  overjoyed  ears, 
and,  inflamed  by  the  fire  of  divine  love,  her  heart  gave 
itself  up  to  so  fervent  a  prayer,  that  she  became  wrapped 
in  ecstasy  and  saw  in  a  vision  the  three  saints  whom 
God  had  sent  to  aid  her.  They  were  St.  John  the 
Baptist,  St.  Augustine  and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine. 
And  scarcely  had  they  given  her  to  understand,  that 
the  cup  of  her  heart's  desire  was  to  be  filled  to  overflow- 
ing, than  she  heard  a  celestial  voice,  the  voice  of  her 
Jesus,  who  called  and  said  to  her:  "Come,  Rita,  my 
beloved.  It  is  now  time  for  you  to  enter  the  Madda- 
lena  Convent  whose  door  was  so  often  closed  against 
you." 

Awakening,  as  it  were,  from  a  profound  sleep,  St. 


St.  Rita  Enters  Maddalema  Convent  73 

Rita  rose  from  the  prie-dieu  on  which  she  had  been 
kneeling,  went  to  the  window  and  saw  a  person  of  ven- 
erable mien  and  aspect  standing  at  the  door.  He  wore 
a  garment  of  camel's  hair,  cinctured  with  a  leather 
girdle,  and  he  made  signs  that  she  should  follow  him. 
St.  Rita,  recognizing  that  the  person,  who  beckoned  her 
to  follow  him,  was  no  other  than  her  patron  St.  John 
the  Baptist,  whom  she  had  seen  in  the  vision,  left  her 
house  at  once,  and,  with  her  heart  filled  with  spiritual 
joy  and  gladness,  she  followed  her  holy  guide.  They 
climbed  together  the  rugged  steeps  of  the  reef  called 
Schioppo,  on  whose  skirt  Rocca  Porrena  is  situated. 
When  she  had  arrived  at  the  summit  of  the  reef,  there 
appeared  to  her  St.  Augustine  and  St.  Nicholas  of 
Tolentine,  and  she  felt  as  if  she  were  standing,  so  to 
speak,  on  Mt.  Thabor,  so  refulgent  was  the  light  which 
radiated  from  the  countenances  of  her  three  patrons. 
Dazzled  by  the  spectacle,  St.  Rita  prostrated  herself  at 
their  feet,  and  thanked  them,  with  humble  and  devout 
reverence,  for  all  the  favors  they  had  obtained  for  her, 
and  again  she  recommended  herself  to  their  protection. 

They  commanded  her  to  arise  and  follow  them.  She 
obeyed  immediately  and  walked  behind  them  as  they 
directed  their  steps  in  the  direction  of  Cascia.  Every 
step  she  took  told  St.  Rita  that  she  was  drawing  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  long  desired  goal,  and  her  heart  was 
filled  with  indescribable  joy,  as  she  listened  to  the  heav- 
enly words  of  her  guides  as  they  conversed  with  one 
another  on  the  way.  It  was  indeed  a  memorable  jour- 
ney, and  St.  Rita  must  have  felt  as  did  the  two  pilgrims 
who  conversed  with  Christ  on  the  road  to  Emmaus;  for 
when  she  arrived  at  Cascia,  yea,  even  at  the  very  door 
of  the  Maddalena  Convent,  the  desire  of  consecratiivq- 


74  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

herself,  body  and  soul  to  her  beloved  Jesus,  was  more 
ardent  than  ever. 

Finding,  as  was  natural,  the  door  and  the  windows 
of  the  Maddalena  closed  tightly,  her  guides,  neverthe- 
less, led  her  into  the  cloister,  and  then  addressed  her 
these  words:  "Rita,  remain  a  rational  bee  in  the  gar- 
den of  the  Spouse  whom  you  have  so  long  and  ardently 
loved ;  so  that,  collecting  the  flowers  of  virtues,  you  may 
build  a  sweet  honey-comb.  You  are  now  in  the  house 
of  your  Spouse,  Jesus.  Love  Him  with  all  your  heart 
and  soul  and  your  eternal  salvation  is  secure.  Return 
thanks  to  God  for  so  great  a  favor  done  in  your  behalf. 
Praise  His  infinite  mercy,  and  publish  that  there  is  noth- 
ing impossible  to  God.  Rita,  the  impossible  is  overcome 
in  your  behalf."  Having  said  these  words,  the  three 
saints  disappeared.  St.  Rita,  overcome  with  happiness 
because  she  was  now  within  the  cloister,  spent  the  re- 
mainder of  the  night  in  giving  thanks  to  the  Lord  for 
the  singular  favor  He  had  bestowed  upon  her. 

When  the  morning  was  come,  and  the  nuns  of  the 
Maddalena  discovered  that  a  secular  was  within  the 
cloister,  they  were  both  surprised  and  astonished.  Who 
is  she?  How  did  she  get  in?  ran  from  lip  to  lip,  as, 
with  wondering  eyes  the  nuns  fixed  their  gaze  on  St. 
Rita.  Some  of  the  nuns  began  to  suspect  that  one  of 
the  community  had  secretly  allowed  her  to  enter  the 
cloister,  while  others  thought  that,  perhaps,  through 
negligence  the  door  of  the  convent  had  been  left  un- 
locked. However,  when  some  of  the  surprise  that  at- 
tended the  discovery  of  St.  Rita  in  the  cloister  had 
passed  away,  the  nuns,  in  a  body,  approached  her  and 
asked:  What  manner  of  person  she  was,  and  by  what 
means  she  had  entered  their  cloister? 

St.  Rita  with  humility  written  in  her  gladsome  eyes, 


St,  Rita  Enters  Maddalena  Corvoent  75 

and  with  humility  guiding  the  sweet  and  convincing  elo- 
quence of  her  eager  lips,  thus  answered  them:  "I  am 
that  poor  widow  of  Rocca  Porrena  who  many  times 
asked  to  be  admitted  as  a  member  of  your  community, 
and  was  as  many  times  refused  as  unworthy  of  so  great 
a  happiness.  But  know,  beloved  superioress  and  sisters, 
that  God,  wishing  to  do  me  a  singular  favor,  sent,  last 
night,  to  my  house  in  Rocca  Porrena,  His  precursor, 
St.  John  the  Baptist,  accompanied  by  that  Sun  of 
Heaven,  St.  Augustine,  and  that  Star  of  Heaven,  St. 
Nicholas  of  Tolentine,  to  conduct  me  into  your  midst. 
Nevertheless,  I  ask  you,  in  the  name  of  that  God  who 
has  favored  me  with  His  mercy,  to  accept  me  as  a  mem- 
ber of  your  community." 

The  nuns  of  the  Maddalena  listened  with  amaze- 
ment while  St.  Rita  related  how  she  had  been  conducted 
into  the  cloister,  and  when  she  had  concluded  her  story, 
all  the  nuns,  w  ith  one  voice,  cried  out,  that  they  accepted 
her  as  a  companion,  and  then  humbly  besought  her  par- 
don, for  having  refused,  so  many  times,  her  request  for 
admission  into  their  convent  home. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

St.  Rita  Distkibutes  Her  Temporal  Goods  Among 

THE  Poor,  and  Receives  the  Augus- 

TiNiAN  Habit 

/^  RE  AT  indeed  was  the  joy  that  filled  the  heart  and 

Cfw  ^^^  ^^  ^^'  ^it^'  when  the  nuns  of  the  Maddalena 
^^  proclaimed  unanimously,  that  they  would  gladly 
accept  her  as  a  companion  and  admit  her  into  their  com- 
munity. And  not  unmindful  of  the  command  of  her 
divine  Spouse  when  He  said:  "Hearken,  O  daughter, 
and  see,  and  incline  thy  ear :  and  forget  thy  people  and 
thy  Father's  house,  and  the  king  shall  greatly  desire  thy 
beauty,"  before  receiving  the  religious  habit,  she  re- 
turned to  Rocca  Porrena,  to  sell  whatever  property  she 
possessed  and  distribute  the  proceeds  amongst  the  poor 
and  needy,  so  that  she  might  not  have  a  single  tie  or 
obligation  that  would  bind  her  to  the  world.  She  lost 
no  time  in  putting  into  execution  the  evangelical  coun- 
sel; she  sold  everything  she  had  in  the  world,  to  be  able 
to  follow,  without  hindrance,  her  crucified  Lord.  Yes, 
she  even  did  more.  She  renounced  her  native  village, 
for  she  is  called,  not  St.  Rita  of  Rocca  Porrena,  but 
rather  St.  Rita  of  Cascia. 

Returning  to  Cascia,  she  repaired  at  once  to  hear 
Mass  in  the  Church  which  is  today  the  reliquary  of  her 
body.     While  there  she  heard  a  sermon  on  the  words  of 

76 


St,  Rita  Received  the  Augustinian  Habit        77 

Christ:  I  am  the  way,  and  the  truth  and  the  life. 
These  words  made  a  deep  impression  on  her  mind,  and 
though  St.  Rita  was  an  unlettered  woman,  an  interior 
divine  hght  made  her  understand  the  real  and  true 
meaning  of  the  text.  After  meditating  for  some  time 
on  the  security  of  that  sacred  way,  on  the  infallibility 
of  that  divine  truth,  and  on  the  eternity  of  that  happy 
life,  her  heart  became  filled  with  a  burning  desire  to 
walk  henceforth  on  no  other  way,  to  seek  no  other  truth, 
to  aspire  to  no  other  life.  For  she  said  to  herself:  "I 
know  my  beloved  Jesus  is  the  way,  and  the  truth  and 
the  life."  Consumed,  therefore,  with  the  most  ardent 
desire  of  following  her  divine  Spouse,  St.  Rita  received 
the  Augustinian  habit  in  the  Convent  of  the  Maddalena 
at  Cascia,  and  took  the  name  of  Rita  di  Antonio,  as 
may  be  learned  from  the  archives  of  the  Maddalena 
Convent. 

St.  Rita  was  now  in  the  home  of  her  long  coveted 
desires,  she  was  now  on  the  way  to  become  a  bride  of 
Christ,  and  a  spiritual  daughter  of  her  beloved  pro- 
tector, St.  Augustine,  and  a  spiritual  sister  of  her  other 
protector,  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine.  She,  therefore, 
began  her  novitiate  with  so  much  joy  and  consolation  of 
soul,  that  all  the  nuns  were  both  charmed  and  edified 
with  their  new  companion,  and  thanked  God,  for  having 
placed  in  their  midst,  such  a  marvellous  model  of  every 
virtue.  From  the  very  first  day  of  her  novitiate,  St. 
Rita  began  to  live  according  to  both  the  letter  and 
the  spirit  of  the  convent  rules  and  exercises.  And,  in 
order  that  she  might  bring  herself  and  make  herself 
nearer  and  more  accepta])lc  to  her  beloved  Jesus,  she 
began  the  practice  of  humility  both  in  word  and  deed. 
Her  progress  in  this  l)cautiful  virtue  was  surprisingly 
rapid,  and  she  was  a  novice  but  a  short  time,  when  she 


78  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

had  learned  to  consider  herself  far  beneath  the  other 
religious,  and  she  was  often  heard  to  say:  "I  am  not 
worthy  to  be  the  servant  of  so  many  faithful  servants 
of  Christ." 

Her  heart  was  now  stripped  of  earthly  affection 
and  not  a  day  passed  that  St.  Rita  did  not  offer  it  to 
her  divine  Spouse,  earnestly  imploring  Him  to  imprint 
His  image  in  her  heart,  as  a  pledge  that  He  had 
espoused  her.  Thus,  on  one  occasion,  when  she  was 
asked  why  she  was  so  compassionate  to  the  poor,  St. 
Rita  answered  in  an  humble  manner:  "I  love  the  poor 
of  Jesus,  on  account  of  Jesus,  because  I  have  the  image 
of  Jesus  stamped  in  my  heart."  On  an  other  occasion, 
when  St.  Rita  was  assailed  by  Satan,  who  tried  to  per- 
suade her  that  she  could  save  her  soul  by  returning  to 
the  world,  as  well  as  if  she  remained  in  the  convent, 
she  put  the  infernal  enemy  to  flight  by  simply  saying 
to  him:  "Be  gone,  Satan.  I  belong  to  Jesus  Christ. 
I  have  no  will  of  my  own.  My  will  is  that  of  my  be- 
loved Spouse,  whose  image  is  imprinted  in  my  heart." 
Thus  St.  Rita,  who  had  chosen  Jesus  Christ  for  her 
Lord  and  Master,  not  only  surrendered  to  Him  her 
body,  her  soul  and  all  her  worldly  possession,  but  also 
her  own  sweet  will;  so  that  Jesus  Christ  became,  as  it 
were,  the  motor  power  of  all  her  thoughts  and  actions. 
Such  perfect  resignation  to  the  will  of  God,  on  the  part 
of  the  novice  Rita,  did  not  pass  unnoticed  by  the  nuns 
of  the  Maddalena,  who  could  not  help  observing  that 
she  was  a  model  novice,  and,  indeed  many  of  the  nuns, 
who  had  grown  old  in  the  cloister,  did  not  look  on 
St.  Rita  as  a  novice,  but  considered  her  rather  a  religious 
who  had  already  attained  the  height  of  perfection. 

Especially,  was  the  prioress,  she  who  but  a  short 
time  before  had  told  St.  Rita  that  it  was  impossible  for 


St.  Rita  Received  the  Augustinian  Habit       79 

her  to  become  a  member  of  the  community,  edified  by 
the  rehgious  conduct  of  the  novice.  And,  one  day, 
after  she  had  spoken,  with  some  length,  on  the  yoke  of 
the  religious  state,  as  exemplified  in  the  observance  of 
the  rule,  in  the  roughness  and  poverty  of  the  clothing, 
in  the  abstinence  from  food,  and  in  the  continuous  exer- 
cise of  mortification,  the  superioress  felt  as  if  she  were 
listening  to  the  voice  of  an  angel  when  St.  Rita  said: 
''Reverend  superioress,  as  soon  as  I  am  instructed  by 
my  superiors,  and  as  soon  as  the  ark  of  religion  is  placed 
on  my  shoulders,  I  shall  shut  my  eyes,  so  as  not  to 
miss  the  way.  For  I  know  I  shall  walk  securely  and 
safely  on  the  straight  way  of  my  sweet  Jesus,  as  did 
the  kine  that  carried  the  ark  of  the  Lord  when  it  was 
restored  by  the  Philistines." 

Guided,  therefore,  by  the  will  of  her  divine  Lover, 
St.  Rita  was  a  model  novice.  She  willingly  and  cheer- 
fully performed  the  most  laborious  occupations  of  the 
convent,  and  was  never  happier  than  when  she  was  em- 
ployed in  some  lowly  office.  She  was  prompt  and  punc- 
tual at  all  the  community  exercises,  and  the  sound  of 
the  bell  that  called  the  nuns  to  chapel,  was  for  St.  Rita 
the  voice  of  God.  In  the  Community  Parlor,  where  the 
nuns  assembled  to  pass  their  time  in  innocent  recreation, 
St.  Rita  showed  by  her  joyful  countenance,  how  much 
she  enjoyed  the  pious  conversation  of  her  companions; 
and  when  she  herself  spoke,  her  words  possessed  a  mys- 
terious power  which  inclined  the  souls  of  her  hearers 
to  God. 

Thus,  with  lier  lieart  in  God,  and  her  eyes  always 
fixed  on  God,  St.  Rita  found,  during  the  time  of  her 
noviceship,  the  yoke  of  the  religious  life  so  sweet,  that 
she  never  ceased  to  thank  God  for  His  unspeakable 
goodness,  in  having  conducted  her  into  the  cloister  to 


80  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

be  a  companion  of  His  chosen  brides.  And  as  a  memo- 
rial of  her  gratitude  to  God,  St.  Rita  solemnized  every 
year  the  annversiary  of  her  entrance  as  a  novice  into 
the  Maddalena  Convent. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

St.  Rita  Makes  Her  Solemn  Profession — She  is 
Favored  With  a  Mysterious  Vision 

AT  LAST  the  time  came  for  which  St.  Rita  sighed 
so  long.  She  had  completed  her  novitiate,  and 
the  happy  day  v^as  come,  on  which  she  was  to 
make  the  solemn  profession  of  the  three  vows  of  obedi- 
ence, poverty  and  chastity,  according  to  the  rule  of  the 
great  and  illustrious  St.  Augustine.  She  made  her 
profession  in  the  chapel  of  the  Maddalena,  in  the 
presence  of  the  nuns,  and  thus  became  the  spouse  of  the 
Son  of  God.  Her  profession  filled  St.  Rita's  heart  and 
soul  with  unspeakable  joy  and  gladness.  She  gave  her- 
self wholly  to  Jesus  and  Jesus  became  wholly  hers.  And 
to  make  her  understand,  that  the  sacrifice  she  had  made 
was  pleasing  to  God,  she  was  favored  with  a  mysterious 
vision  that  delighted  her  heart  and  inflamed  her  soul 
with  the  ardent  desire  to  arrive  at  the  pinnacle  of  re- 
ligious perfection,  by  means  of  the  three  vows  she  had 
made,  aided  by  the  virtues  which  she  had  begun  to  prac- 
tice from  her  earliest  childhood. 

Having  made  her  solemn  profession,  the  new  spouse 
of  Christ  spent  nearly  all  the  day  in  giving  thanks  to 
God,  for  having  accepted  her  as  His  bride,  when  she 
did  not  consider  herself  even  worthy  to  be  His  slave. 
And  recaUing  to  mind  all  the  great  favors  God  had 

81 


82  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

bestowed  upon  her,  and  especially  that  of  sending  three 
saints  from  heaven  to  conduct  her  into  the  cloister,  so 
that  He  might  make  her  His  bride,  St.  Rita  shed  tears 
of  joy,  and  felt  that  the  plenitude  of  heaven  had  de- 
scended upon  her. 

On  the  night  of  the  day  of  her  espousals  with  her 
divine  Fiance,  through  the  three  vows  of  religion,  St. 
Rita  was  the  recipient  of  a  singular  favor  that  made  her 
supremely  happy  and  pointed  out  to  her  a  sure  way  to 
arrive  at  the  port  of  eternal  salvation.  As  she  was 
kneeling  before  the  crucifix  in  her  little  cell,  she  saw 
in  a  vision,  as  the  Patriarch  Jacob  saw  in  a  sleep,  a 
ladder  standing  upon  the  earth,  and  the  top  thereof 
touching  heaven.  Gazing  attentively  at  the  ladder,  she 
observed  God  at  the  top  of  the  ladder  inviting  her  to 
ascend,  and  she  also  saw  angels  ascending  and  descend- 
ing by  it.  While  contemplating  the  spectacle,  she 
heard  a  voice  which  said  to  her:  "Rita,  if  you  wish  to 
unite  yourself  to  God  in  heaven,  you  must  chmb  this 
ladder."  When  the  vision  disappeared,  St.  Rita  felt 
much  consoled  and  was  filled  with  heavenly  transports 
because  she  had  seen  God,  though  it  was  only  for  a 
brief  moment. 

St.  Rita  began,  at  once,  to  consider  the  mystery  of 
the  ladder  she  had  seen  in  the  vision,  and  remembering 
that  they  were  angels  who  ascended  and  descended  by 
it,  she  came  to  understand,  that  she  must  become  like 
them,  if  she  would  follow  in  their  footsteps.  Penetrat- 
ing deeper  into  the  mystery,  the  very  steps  of  the  ladder 
taught  her,  that  she  herself  must  build  at  once,  a  spir- 
itual ladder,  on  whose  steps,  made  of  virtues,  she  could 
ascend  to  heaven,  and  enjoy  there,  for  all  eternity,  the 
presence  and  the  companionship  of  God. 

St.  Rita,  therefore,  understood  the  meaning  of  the 


St.  Rita  Makes  Her  Solemn  Profession        83 

mystery  of  the  vision,  and,  if  as  a  novice  she  was  per- 
fect, she  now  began  to  advance  from  virtue  to  virtue, 
ascending,  day  after  day,  higher  and  higher  on  the  lad- 
der of  religious  perfection.  And  fearful  lest  the  wind 
of  vainglory  should  in  any  way  extinguish  the  light  or 
lustre  of  her  virtues,  St.  Rita  safeguarded  them,  as  care- 
fully as  she  could,  by  hiding  them  from  the  eyes  of  pub- 
lic gaze.  And  considering  also  that  to  ascend  to  heaven 
by  the  ladder  of  perfection,  it  is  necessary  to  put  the  foot 
where  first  the  hand  was  placed,  she  judged  prudently 
that  to  assure  the  merit  of  the  work  of  her  hands,  it  was 
best  to  hide  her  works  with  the  steps  she  took  for  her 
advancement  in  the  beautiful  virtue  of  humility.  Sister 
St.  Rita  understood  the  true  meaning  of  the  words  of 
her  divine  Bridegroom:  "Learn  of  me,  because  I  am 
meek  and  humble  of  heart.'' 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

How  St.  Kita  Obseeved  the  Vow  of  Obedience 

^^HE    first    resolution    St.    Rita    made,  after    her 
(i[  solemn  profession,  was  to  arrive  at  the  smnmit  of 
^^  religious  perfection,  by  a  strict  observance  of  the 
vows  she  professed  in  the  Chapel  of  the  Maddalena 
Convent.     Being  closely  united  to  Jesus  by  the  sacred 
bonds  of  her  vows,  she  began,  at  once,  to  climb  the 
ladder  of  religious  perfection,  by  placing  her  feet  on 
the  step  of  obedience,  which  is,  indeed,  the  first  step 
or  rung  of  the  ladder  of  religious  perfection.     That 
obedience  is  the  first  step  of  the  ladder  of  rehgious  per- 
fection, we  learn  from  our  holy  father  St.  Augustme 
who  said:     "Povertv  is  a  great  virtue,  because  it  rules 
over  riches.     Chastity  is  also  a  great  virtue,  because  it 
dominates  the  flesh.     But  the  virtue  of  obedience  is 
greater  than  either  poverty  or  chastity,  because  it  rules 
and  restrains  the  intellect  and  the  will.     The  Holy 
Ghost  expresses  the  same  truth  when  He  says:       Bet- 
ter is  obedience  than  victims."     Hence  obedience  is 
more  excellent  than  poverty,  or  chastity,  because  the 
spiritual  powers  of  the  soul,  which  are  sacrificed  to  Crod, 
are  more  excellent  than  the  exterior  goods  of  sensual 
gratification  which  are  sacrificed  by  the  two  other  vows. 
To  understand  the  nature  of  obedience,  as  regards 
the  religious  state,  we  must  observe,  that  there  are  two 

84 


Hotv  St,  Rita  Observed  the  Vow  of  Obedience    85 

kinds  or  classes  of  obedience.  In  the  first  place,  there 
is  an  obedience  that  is  called  blind  obedience.  This 
obedience  has  no  eyes,  as  it  were.  It  inclines  the  sub- 
ject to  obey  the  command  of  the  superior  without  ques- 
tioning the  command,  without  taking  into  consideration 
the  difficulty  of  obeying  the  command,  or  without  ad- 
verting if  the  command  be  unjust  or  impossible.  The 
expression  "Blind  obedience"  signifies  "not  an  unreason- 
ing or  unreasonable  submission  to  authority,  but  a  keen 
appreciation  of  the  rights  of  authority,  the  reasonable- 
ness of  authority,  and  blindness  only* to  such  selfish  or 
worldly  considerations,  as  would  lessen  regard  for 
authority."  Ihis  Wind  obedience  may  be  called,  and  is, 
perfect  obedience. 

The  second  kind  of  obedience  has  as  many  eyes,  so 
to  speak,  as  the  animals  and  the  wheels  of  the  cart 
that  the  Prophet  Ezekiel  saw  in  a  vision,  and  the  sub- 
ject who  is  guided  by  this  obedience  understands  per- 
fectly the  difiiculties  of  the  command  of  his  superiors. 
He  feels  how  repugnant  it  is  to  the  intellect  and  the 
violence  it  does  the  will.  Yet,  notwithstanding  this 
knowledge,  he  obeys  promptly  and  joyfully,  considering 
easy,  even  that  which  is  impossible.  This  kind  of  obe- 
dience is  superlative  and  therefore  most  perfect. 

Jesus  Christ,  Himself,  gave  us  an  example  of  this 
obedience.  Being  divine  Wisdom  itself.  He  became 
obedient  even  to  the  death  of  the  Cross  though  He 
knew  death  was  repugnant  to  His  divinity.  And  again 
when  He  was  suff'erlng  a  terrible  agonv  in  the  Garden 
of  Gethsemane,  did  He  not  cry  out?  "Father,  \^  it  be 
possible,  let  this  chalice  })ass  from  me:"  and  then  as  if 
recollecting  tlie  task  that  was  before  Him,  He  added: 
"Yet  not  my  will  but  thine  be  done." 

The  angels  also  practice  this  kind  of  obedience,  and 


86  Life  of  Sister  St  Rita  of  Cascia 

though  they  are  pure  spirits,  endowed  with  superior 
knowledge,  nevertheless,  they  not  only  obey  God  with 
diligence  and  promptitude,  but  they  even  make  them- 
selves obedient  to  the  welfare  of  creatures,  though  they 
know  the  creatures  are  inferior  to  them  in  everything. 
Now  since  this  most  perfect  obedience,  more  worthy  of 
reward,  because  more  meritorious  than  blind  obedience, 
is  truly  characteristic  of  the  angels,  we  may  call  those 
persons  angels  or  angelic  persons,  who,  on  earth,  are 
imitators  of  the  angels  in  their  obedience. 

Judged  by  this  standard,  St.  Rita  was,  indeed,  an 
angehc  woman.  So  obedient  indeed  was  she,  that  when 
commanded  by  her  superioress  to  do  anything,  even 
though  she  knew  the  command  was  impossible,  she 
obeyed  with  the  same  promptitude  as  if  the  command 
was  easily  executed. 

It  is  related  by  many  authors  of  the  life  of  St.  Rita, 
that  the  superioress  of  the  Maddalena,  in  order  to  put 
her  obedience  to  a  test,  commanded  the  saint  to  water 
daily  a  dead  and  withered  plant  in  the  convent  garden. 
St.  Rita  obeyed  without  saying  a  single  word  about  the 
uselessness  of  her  labor.  She  watered  the  plant  every 
day  for  a  year,  though  she  knew  it  would  not  revive 
without  a  miracle.  God,  however,  rewarded  the  obedi- 
ence of  St.  Rita ;  to  the  great  astonishment  of  the  nuns, 
the  dead  plant  revived,  put  forth  leaves  and  flowers,  and 
was  the  most  beautiful  of  all  the  plants  in  the  convent 

garden. 

We  will  cite  another  beautiful  example  of  the  obedi- 
ence and  resignation  of  St.  Rita.  Pope  Nicholas  V  had 
declared  the  year  1450  a  jubilee  year,  to  which  were 
attached  many  indulgences,  that  could  be  gained  by 
those  visiting  Rome.  As  some  of  the  nuns  had  received 
permission  to  make  the  journey,  St.  Rita  prompted  by 


How  St,  Eita  Observed  the  Vow  of  Obedience    87 

motives  of  piety  and  zeal  desired  to  accompany  them. 
She  therefore  went  to  the  superioress  and  humbly  asked 
permission  to  go  to  Rome  with  the  other  nuns,  so  that 
she  might  gain  the  indulgences  of  the  jubilee.  The 
superioress,  looking  at  the  disfigured  forehead  of  St. 
Rita — of  which  we  shall  speak  in  another  chapter — did 
not,  at  first,  feel  inclined  to  grant  the  permission.  How- 
ever, after  a  few  moments  of  consideration,  she  dis- 
missed St.  Rita  saying:  "Sister  Rita,  I  will  permit  you 
to  make  the  journey  to  Rome,  provided  the  wound  on 
your  forehead  be  healed,  when  the  sisters  are  ready  to 
start  on  the  journey." 

Leaving  the  presence  of  the  superioress,  St.  Rita 
w^ent  at  once  to  the  chapel  to  ask  her  divine  Spouse  if  it 
were  pleasing  to  Him  that  she  should  make  the  journey 
to  Rome.  If  so,  she  supplicated  Him  to  heal  the  wound 
on  her  forehead,  but  if  not,  she  would  resign  herself  to 
His  holy  will  and  the  will  of  her  superioress.  God  see- 
ing the  humble  resignation  of  St.  Rita,  and  knowing  the 
obedient  spirit  of  His  humble  and  devout  servant,  heard 
her  prayer,  and  wonderful  to  relate,  the  wound  was  im- 
mediately healed,  and  St.  Rita  was  granted  permission 
to  accompany  the  other  sisters  to  Rome. 

So  perfect,  indeed,  was  the  obedience  of  St.  Rita, 
that  she  would  have  rather  died  than  not  obey  the  least 
command  of  her  superiors,  whom  she  considered  the  rc])- 
resentatives  of  God  and  her  guides  and  directors.  She 
was  like  the  sheep  that  always  hear  the  voice  of  the  shep- 
herd and  follow  him.  Free  from  the  slavery  of  her  own 
will,  St.  Rita  was  so  perfectly  united  to  the  will  of  God, 
that  she  had  no  self-confidence  and  abandoned  herself 
entirely  to  God.  Hence  so  Christ-like  was  the  obedi- 
ence of  Sister  St.  Rita,  tliat  her  every  act  and  all  her 


88  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

acts  were  agreeable  to  God ;  for,  having  once  placed  her 
feet  on  the  first  step  of  the  ladder  of  religious  per- 
fection, she  ascended  higher  and  higher,  and  nearer  and 
nearer  to  God,  and  became  what  she  truly  was,  a  model 
of  the  most  perfect  obedience. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Evangelical  Poverty  that  St.  Rita  Peofesseb 

AND  Practiced 

^/N  THE  last  chapter  we  have  seen  that  St.  Rita 
11  began  her  ascent  on  the  ladder  of  religious  perfec- 
^-^  tion,  by  the  strict  obesrvance  of  the  vow  of  obedi- 
ence. Desirous  of  ascending  higher,  she  next  placed  her 
feet,  so  to  speak,  on  the  second  step  of  the  ladder,  which 
step  is  evangelical  poverty.  Poverty  is  so  eminent  a 
virtiie,  that  Jesus  Christ,  Himself,  professed  it  when 
He  was  bom  poor  in  a  cold  and  wretched  stable,  and 
died  naked  on  the  Cross,  His  only  belongings  were  three 
nails  and  a  crown  of  thorns.  Moreover,  in  His  sermon 
on  the  mount,  Christ  gave  poverty  the  first  place  among 
the  Beatitudes  when  He  said:  "Blessed  are  the  poor 
in  spirit,  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 

As  regards  St.  Rita,  who  knew  well  that  the  excel- 
lence of  holy  poverty  consists,  not  so  much  in  despising 
riches,  as  in  renouncing  the  desire  of  possessing  them, 
she  made  such  rapid  progress  in  the  practice  of  this  vir- 
tue, that  after  she  had  made  her  vows,  she  never  had 
the  least  affection  for  riches.  We  have  ah*eady  learned, 
that  before  St.  Rita  began  her  novitiate  in  the  convent 
of  the  Maddalena,  she  sold  all  she  possessed  in  the  world, 
and  distributed  the  proceeds  among  God's  poor.  Thus, 
in  order  to  be  poor,  she  renounced  cveryiliing  in  the 

89 


90  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

world  and  of  the  world,  so  that  she  might  follow  her 
divine  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ.  So  filled,  indeed,  was  St. 
Rita  with  the  desire  of  belonging  entirely  to  God,  and  of 
seeking  nothing  but  the  things  of  God,  that,  when  she 
made  her  solemn  profession,  she  consecrated  herself 
without  reserve  to  God.  Her  heart  thus  stripped  of 
every  affection  to  temporal  things,  and  so  free  was  her 
soul  from  every  inclination  to  worldly  interests,  that  she 
considered  them  the  enemies  of  her  eternal  salvation. 

Because  St.  Rita  loved  holy  poverty  so  much,  she 
never  wore  but  one  habit,  the  very  one  she  received  the 
day  of  her  entrance  into  religion.  This  habit  she  never 
laid  aside  during  all  the  long  years  she  lived  in  the  con- 
vent, and  when  she  died,  she  was  buried  with  the  same 
habit.  And  even  to  this  day,  though  centuries  have 
passed  since  her  pure  soul  ascended  to  heaven,  it  serves 
as  her  shroud,  a  splendid  monument  of  her  heroic  pov- 
erty. Many  and  many  a  time  was  she  asked  by  the  nuns 
why  she  continued  to  wear  such  an  old  and  patched  habit. 
St.  Rita  always  answered  with  humility:  "Sisters,  I 
wear  this  old  habit  to  imitate  the  poverty  of  my  Spouse, 
Jesus  Christ."  She  meditated  every  day  on  the  poverty 
of  Jesus,  and  many  times  while  at  meditation  in  the 
chapel,  she  was  heard  to  cry  out:  "O  my  good  Jesus, 
to  clothe  me,  you  stripped  yourself.  To  make  me  rich, 
you  lived  and  died  in  extreme  poverty." 

So  penetrated  was  St.  Rita's  soul  with  the  spirit  of 
poverty,  that  she  was  content  to  occupy  a  small  room  or 
cell,  whose  only  furniture  consisted  of  a  prie-dieu,  a 
hard  bench  that  served  as  a  bed,  a  stone  was  her  pillow, 
and  the  walls  of  her  cell  were  decorated  with  a  few 
pictures  representing  different  scenes  of  our  Lord's 
Passion.  There  in  that  little  cell  St.  Rita  was  su- 
premely happy.     And  when  not  engaged  in  convent 


The  Poverty  that  St,  Rita  Practiced  91 

labor  or  community  exercises,  she  was  accustomed  to 
spend  hours  before  the  Crucifix,  saying  to  her  divine 
Lord  and  Master:  "O  my  sweet  Jesus!  why  should  I, 
a  vile  creature,  a  miserable  sinner,  seek  a  better  cell  than 
the  one  I  have?  Why  should  I  desire  comforts  or 
pleasure  in  food,  clothing,  or  recreation,  when  I  know 
that  you  had  no  place  to  lay  your  head,  and  that  you 
suffered  so  much  for  me,  naked,  wounded  and  nailed  to 

a  cross?" 

One  particular  incident  in  the  life  of  St.  Rita  will 
give  you  an  idea  how  detached  she  was  from  earthly 
things.  On  the  occasion  of  her  journey  to  Rome,  in 
company  with  the  other  nuns,  St.  Rita  happened  to  find 
on  the  way  a  gold  coin  which  she  threw  into  the  swift 
waters  of  a  river  they  had  to  cross.  The  nuns  were 
surprised  at  her  act,  which  they  considered,  at  least, 
imprudent,  and  some  of  them  reproved  her,  saynig: 
*'We  may  stand  in  need  of  money  before  we  return  to 

Cascia." 

St.  Rita,  sorry  that  she  had  displeased  her  sisters, 
responded  to  their  complaint  with  these  words:  "Sister, 
I  threw  that  piece  of  money  into  the  river,  because, 
though  the  coin  was  small  and  of  little  weight,  to  me 
it  seemed  very  heavy,  so  heavy,  indeed,  that  I  did  not 
have  the  strength  to  carry  it  any  longer." 

Not  only  did  St.  Rita  practice  evangelical  poverty, 
but  she  also  tried  to  induce  others  to  practice  it  by  her 
urgent  words:     Many  times  did  she  say  to  the  nuns: 

"My  dear  sisters:  if  you  wish  to  have  the  esteem  and 
confidence  of  the  good  and  virtuous,  have  little  or  no 
love  for  temporal  riches.  Observe  strictly  your  vow  of 
poverty.  A  nun  who  wishes  to  belong  entirely  to  God, 
must  be  totallv  detached  from  all  earthly  things." 

St.  Rita  beheved  as  St.  Paul  did,  that  all  things  out- 


92  JLife  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

side  of  Jesus,  which  did  not  help  to  gain  Jesus,  are  as 
filth  and  uncleanness.  She  was  a  perfect  model  of 
poverty.  She  was  a  true  religious  and  truly  poor,  and 
the  example  of  her  life  in  the  convent  was  a  sublime 
hymn,  so  to  speak,  in  praise  and  honor  of  holy  poverty. 
During  her  long  years  in  the  Maddalena  Convent,  St. 
Rita  was  never  heard  to  say:  **This  is  mine,"  or  "that 
is  yours,"  for,  having  once  put  her  feet  on  the  step  of 
poverty,  the  second  step  of  the  ladder  of  religious  per- 
fection, she  only  heard  the  sweet  voice  of  her  beloved 
Jesus  saying  to  her:  "Come,  Rita,  I  am  poor,  and 
follow  me,** 


CHAPTER  XX. 

The  Angelic  Purity  with  Which  St.  Rita  Ob- 
served THE  Vow  OF  Chastity 


m 


'E  HAVE  already  said  that  St.  Rita  was  a 
perfect  model  of  obedience  and  poverty.  We 
will  now  say  that  St.  Rita,  by  a  miracle  of  God's 
grace,  was  a  perfect  model  of  chastity,  for  this  beauti- 
ful virtue  as  professed  and  practiced  in  the  religious 
state,  is  really  a  miracle  of  grace.  Nature  cannot  give 
it,  it  is  truly  a  gift  of  God.  True  we  cannot  place  St. 
Rita  in  the  number  of  those  virgins  who  form  an 
assemblage  apart  in  heaven,  still,  because  she  preserved 
always  the  virginity  of  her  soul,  she  was  like  to  the  an- 
gels in  purity. 

We  know  that  from  her  earliest  childhood,  it  was 
St.  Rita's  ardent  desire  to  consecrate  herself  wholly  and 
entirely  to  God,  and  that  she  had  the  greatest  horror  of 
anything  which  might,  in  the  least,  mar  the  untarnished 
whiteness  of  virginal  purity.  Having  embraced  the 
marriage  state,  not  because  she  ^vished  it,  but  rather  in 
obedience  to  the  will  of  God  and  that  of  her  parents, 
St.  Rita,  while  living  in  that  state,  observed  the  most 
perfect  conjugal  chastity.  Even  when  St.  Rita  was 
wife  and  mother,  the  desire  of  embracing  the  more  per- 
fect state  of  life  was  ever  uppermost  in  her  mind.  And 
when  death  liad  bereft  her  of  husband  and  children,  we 

93 


94  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

know  how  promptly  she  hastened,  and  how  she  succeeded 
in  a  miraculous  manner,  to  bury  herself,  so  to  speak,  in 
the  cloister,  to  become,  first,  a  domestic  of  God  and 
then  a  bride  of  the  Son  of  God.  Once  within  the  walls 
of  the  cloister,  St.  Rita  became  an  angelic  woman,  for 
she  acquired,  aided  by  the  grace  of  God,  and  the  strict 
observance  of  the  vow  of  chastity,  that  purity  which  is 
characteristic  of  the  angels. 

So  jealous,  indeed,  was  St.  Rita  of  the  vow  of 
chastity,  that  she  kept  a  vigilant  guard  over  her  senses, 
curbing  them  and  keeping  them  away  from  whatever 
might  be  the  occasion  of  offense  against  her  vow.  She 
guarded  her  eyes,  by  keeping  them  always  fixed  on 
Jesus;  her  ears,  by  listening  only  to  whatever  spoke  of 
God;  her  tongue,  by  speaking  only  the  language  of 
heaven;  and  her  thoughts  and  her  heart  by  renewing 
every  day  the  oblation  of  herself  to  God. 

The  angelic  life  that  St.  Rita  led  in  the  convent,  did 
not  escape  the  notice  of  the  arch-enemy  of  souls,  and 
God,  who  wished  that  the  saint  should  enhance  her 
fidelity  as  spouse  of  His  Son,  permitted  Lucifer  to 
tempt  and  assail  her,  sometimes  by  flattery  or  pleasing 
suggestions.  But  St.  Rita  was  too  well  schooled  in  vir- 
tue to  prove  a  victim  to  the  wiles  of  the  crafty  Lucifer, 
and  just  as  often  as  he  tried  to  tempt  her  to  offend 
against  her  vow,  just  as  often  was  he  defeated.  Indeed, 
St.  Rita  seemed  to  know  that  her  chastity  was  to  be  the 
chief  object  of  Lucifer's  attacks,  hence  to  triumph  over 
so  powerful  an  enemy,  she  directed  all  her  efforts  to 
make  her  body  subject  to  the  spirit. 

The  means  St.  Rita  used  to  subjugate  her  body 
might  be  called  by  those  who  have  no  faith,  or  by  those 
who  love  the  pandering  luxury  of  the  world,  the  extrava- 
gance of  folly.     But  to  St.  Rita  it  was  a  sweet  folly,  the 


How  St  Rita  Observed  the  Vow  of  Chastity      95 

folly  of  her  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ,  who  died  on  the  cross. 
To  subjugate  her  body  she  punished  it  with  fasting 
and  abstinence.  She  observed  three  Lents  in  the 
year,  fasted  the  vigils  of  the  feasts  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  and  all  the  vigils  of  the  feasts  of  her  particu- 
lar patrons,  St.  John  the  Baptist,  St.  Augustine  and 
St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine.  She  ate  but  one  meal  a 
day,  and  this  meal  consisted,  for  the  most  part,  of 
bread  and  water.  By  weakening  her  body  St.  Rita 
became  spiritually  stronger,  and  better  able  to  defend 
herself  against  the  Evil  One,  hence  she  was  accustomed 
to  say:  "We  must  not  have  any  pity  for  our  bodies; 
the  more  we  pander  and  fondle  them,  the  more  rebellious 
they  will  become  against  the  spirit." 

Guided  by  this  rule,  St.  Rita  punished  her  body  with- 
out pity,  and  whenever  she  felt  the  least  symptom  of 
rebellion  in  her  body,  occasioned  by  some  diabolical 
temptation  against  her  vow,  if  it  happened  to  be  winter, 
she  would  cast  herself  on  the  snow-covered  ground  of 
the  convent  garden,  and  remain  there  until  the  tempta- 
tion ceased ;  or  she  would  put  a  finger  or  foot  into  the 
fire,  and  burn  away,  so  to  speak,  the  temptation.  Then 
lifting  her  soul  to  God,  St.  Rita  would  meditate  on  the 
rigors  and  eternity  of  the  punishments  of  hell,  and  say 
to  herself:  "Rita,  you  cannot  suffer,  for  even  a  little 
while,  the  snow  or  fire  which  (rod  has  sent  from  heaven. 
How  then  would  you  be  able  to  suffer  the  eternal  pains 
of  hell?  Do  you  wish  to  go  to  live  forever  with  the 
condemned  souls?  Certainly  not.  Then  fulfill  faith- 
fully tlie  promises  you  have  made  to  God.  Observe 
your  vow,  and  you  will  never  offend  your  divine  Sy)ouse." 

Acting  in  this  manner,  and  reckoning  tliat  the  suf- 
ferings of  this  world  are  not  to  be  compared  with  the 
glory  to  come,  St.  Rita  kept  her  rebellious  flesh  in  sub- 


06  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

jection,  and  was  able  to  overcome  every  attack  of  Luci- 
fer against  her  vow.  And  aided  also  by  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  and  with  the  sweet  names  of  Jesus  and  Mary  ever 
on  her  lips,  and  fortified  by  the  continual  exercise  of 
penance — of  which  we  shall  speak  in  our  next  chapter — 
St.  Rita  preserved  the  flower  of  her  purity,  defended  as 
it  was  by  the  thorns  of  mortification,  as  the  rose  pre- 
serves its  beauty,  defended  by  the  thorns  which  nature 
give  it  for  its  protection. 

For  a  greater  security  of  her  chastity,  of  which  the 
common  enemy  of  souls  was  continually  trying  to  rob 
her,  St.  Rita,  like  the  holy  man  Job,  made  a  covenant 
with  her  eyes,  never  to  look  at,  or  even  think  of,  any- 
thing that  might  be  the  occasion  of  fault  against  her 
purity. 

Never  happier  than  when  she  was  in  the  chapel,  or 
in  the  silence  and  solitude  of  her  little  cell,  St.  Rita 
actually  disliked  to  go  to  the  convent  parlor  to  converse 
with  seculars,  unless  it  was  to  give  spiritual  advice,  or 
console  some  afflicted  soul.  And  when  she  was  obhged 
by  necessity  or  obedience,  to  go  outside  the  convent,  she 
wore  a  heavy  veil  over  her  face,  and  if  by  chance  she 
met  a  friend  or  acquaintance  on  the  street  who  recog- 
nized her,  she  never  stopped  to  speak,  it  being  a  com- 
mon saying  with  her,  "In  ordinary  conversation  with 
seculars,  a  nun  loses  much,  and  gains  little  or  nothing." 

More  than  once,  while  conversing  with  the  nuns,  did 
she  say  to  them:  "Sisters,  be  careful  where  you  look, 
where  you  go,  and  with  whom  you  convene.  There  is 
always  danger  in  what  we  see  becoming  the  occasion  of 
offense  against  God  and  our  vow."  Hence  Sister  St. 
Rita,  by  crucifying  her  flesh,  by  curbing  her  senses,  and 
by  the  grace  of  God,  through  Jesus  Christ,  became  s 
model  of  religious  chastity. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

Mortifications  Practiced  by  St.  Rita  After  She 

Became  a  Nun 


m 


E  MAY  say  with  truth,  that  St.  Rita  was,  from 
childhood,  inchned  to  practice  mortification,  but 
it  was  after  she  had  completed  her  novitiate  and 
had  taken  her  vows,  that  she  began  to  practice,  w^ith 
the  zeal  of  an  Apostle,  what  Christ  urged  His  disciples 
to  do  when  He  said:  "If  any  man  will  come  after 
me,  let  him  deny  himself  and  take  up  his  cross  and  fol- 
low me."  Mindful  of  the  promises  she  made  when  she 
professed  obedience,  poverty  and  chastity,  and  having 
no  object  outside  of  Him  to  whom  she  was  entirely 
dedicated,  St.  Rita  denied  herself,  and  took  up  her  cross 
to  follow  her  divine  Si)ouse,  and  did  follow  Him  on 
the  way  of  the  cross. 

Her  progress  in  perfection  was  truly  surprising  and 
marvellous,  and  in  a  short  time,  she  became  a  model 
of  every  virtue  and  the  edification  of  the  nuns  of  the 
Maddalena,  who  looked  upon  her  as  a  saint.  The  re- 
cipient of  many  and  great  favors  from  the  hands  of 
God,  though  she,  in  her  humility,  said  she  had  done 
nothing  for  her  crucified  Spouse,  St.  Rita  gave  her- 
self up  to  a  life  of  rigorous  and  continual  j)enance  and 
mortification.  Besides  obsen^ing,  as  we  have  already 
noted,  three  Lents  in  the  year,  the  fast  and  abstinence 

97 


98  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

of  the  days  commanded  by  Holy  Mother  Church,  the 
vigils  of  the  feasts  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  of  her 
special  protectors,  St.  John  the  Baptist,  St.  Augustine 
and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine,  she  fasted  on  the  vigils 
of  other  saints  to  whom  she  had  devotion,  and  observed 
also  the  particular  fasts  of  the  Augustinian  Order.  So 
strict,  indeed,  did  St.  Rita  observe  these  fasts,  that  she 
ate  only  enough  to  sustain  life.  She  only  partook  of 
bread  and  water  at  her  meals,  and  never  allowed  any 
excuse,  no  matter  how  grave,  to  interfere  with  the  fast 
and  abstinence.  Though  weakened  by  her  continual 
fasts,  St.  Rita  never  spent  a  moment  in  idleness,  and 
when  not  at  prayer,  she  was  engaged  in  some  useful 
occupation.  At  times  when  her  strength  failed  her 
while  at  work,  she  would  recline,  for  a  half  hour  or 
more,  on  the  bare  floor,  or  on  a  hard  bench,  and  repose 
as  soundly  as  if  she  were  reposing  on  a  bed  of  down. 
She  slept  but  a  few  hours  each  night,  the  remaining 
hours  she  spent  in  prayer  or  in  doing  needle-work  for 
the  community.  She  wore  always,  next  to  her  body,  a 
rough  hair  garment  interwoven  with  thorns  which  very 
often  penetrated  her  delicate  flesh. 

Not  content  with  thus  punishing  her  body,  St.  Rita 
added  another  and  a  more  severe  exercise  of  mortifica- 
tion. She  scourged  herself  three  times  a  day,  and  she 
herself  tells  us,  that  by  so  doing  she  became  strong 
spiritually  and  was  always  sure  of  gaining  the  victory 
over  the  attacks  of  Lucifer.  The  following  incident 
will  tell  us  why  St.  Rita  took  the  discipline.  One  day, 
while  hurrying  to  her  cell,  one  of  the  nuns  asked  her 
where  she  was  going  with  such  eager  haste.  St.  Rita 
responded :  "Sister,  I  am  going  to  weaken  the  strength 
of  the  Evil  One.  I  am  going  to  deprive  him  of  his 
weapons  with  my  discipline." 


Mortifications  Practiced  by  St,  Rita  as  a  Nun     99 

St.  Rita  used  three  disciplines  to  scourge  or  punish 
her  body.  The  first  was  composed  of  small  chains ;  the 
second  of  leathern  thongs;  and  the  third  of  a  number 
of  small  ropes.  She  offered  the  first  scourging  for  the 
Holy  Souls  in  Purgatory ;  the  second  scourging  for  the 
benefactors  of  the  community  of  the  Maddalena  Con- 
vent; and  the  third  scourging  for  all  those  unfortunate 
souls  who  were  in  the  state  of  mortal  sin.  These  scourg- 
ings  were  severe,  so  severe,  indeed,  that  sometimes  the 
blood  flowed  from  her  body.  On  account  of  her  con- 
tinual fastings  and  scourgings,  the  body  of  St.  Rita  be- 
came so  thin  and  frail,  that  the  bones  were  visible  be- 
neath her  flesh.  And  yet  were  you  to  gaze  at  her  eyes, 
you  would  forget  her  wan  and  pallid  face,  for  they 
spoke  a  silent,  yet  eloquent  language,  expressive  of  the 
purity  and  sanctity  of  the  heart  of  a  bride  of  Christ,  and 
to  whom  Christ  was  continually  saying:  "Thou  art  all 
beautiful,  my  beloved,  and  there  is  no  stain  in  thee." 

St.  Rita  had  also  to  suffer  much  from  the  violent 
assaults  and  the  wiles  of  the  devil,  who,  though  always 
vanquished  and  defeated,  was  ever  ready  to  renew  his 
assaults  and  attacks.  Sometimes  he  hid  her  disciplines; 
sometimes  he  told  her  that  scourging  her  body  would 
shorten  her  life ;  other  times  he  would  say  to  her,  that  if 
she  would  not  give  up  fasting  she  would  soon  die;  and 
once  he  appeared  to  her,  under  the  form  of  a  large  and 
hideous  dragon,  to  try  to  frighten  her.  But  St.  Rita 
had  no  fear  of  her  old  enemy,  and  she  put  him  to  flight 
by  making  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  or  by  pronouncing 
the  holy  names  of  Jesus  and  ^lary. 

Thus  for  more  than  forty  years,  St.  Rita  led  a  life 
of  penance  and  mortification,  and  strange  to  relate,  she 
was  not  ill  a  single  day.     Her  first  illness  came  when 


100  Life  of  Sister  St  Rita  of  Cascia 

her  divine  Spouse  called  her  to  go  to  live  in  heaven,  and 
to  enjoy  with  Him  forever  that  glory  and  honor  which 
she  merited  by  her  holy  and  mortified  life  in  spite  of 
the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

St.  Rita's  Admirable  Progress  in  Virtue  During 

Her  Religious  Life 


m 


HILE  living  in  the  world,  St.  Rita  had  led  a 
life  of  virtue  and  sanctity,  but  when  she  left  the 
world  to  become  a  bride  of  Jesus  Christ,  she 
added  new  virtues  to  the  old,  and  spread  everywhere 
around  her  that  sweetest  and  most  fragrant  of  odors, 
which  St.  Paul  calls  the  odor  of  Christ.  Filled  as  St. 
Rita's  heart  was  with  love  for  her  heavenly  Spouse,  it 
became  the  productive  garden  of  all  kinds  of  virtues,  and 
though  she  tried  to  hide  her  virtues  under  the  cloak  of 
humihty,  the  more  she  tried,  the  more  manifest  they 
became.  United  in  spiritual  matrimony  ^vith  Jesus 
Christ,  St.  Rita's  utmost  endeavors  were  to  maintain 
inviolable  fidehty  to  Jesus  Christ.  He  had  called  her 
to  be  His  bride,  and,  on  the  day  of  her  solemn  profes- 
sion, had  placed  on  her  finger  the  golden  ring  of  re- 
ligion, set  with  the  most  precious  jewels,  obedience, 
poverty  and  chastity.  Wrapped  in  the  folds  of  the  love 
of  Jesus  Christ,  and  knowing  that  the  practice  of  vir- 
tues would  make  her  more  and  more  like  Him,  who  is 
virtue  itself,  St.  Rita  availed  herself  of  every  occasion 
to  practice  virtue,  so  that  she  might  please  her  heavenly 
Spouse  whom  she  had  promised  to  love  and  obey. 
Hence  if  she  were  calumniated,  she  bore  the  calumny 

101 


102  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

with  patience;  if  she  were  ill-treated,  she  suffered  the 
ill-treatment  with  humility;  and  if  she  were  insulted, 
she  not  only  pardoned  the  insult,  but  also  prayed  to  God 
for  those  who  insulted  her,  without  opening  her  lips  to 
say  a  word  in  her  own  defense.  So  strict  a  watch  did 
St.  Rita  keep  over  her  tongue,  and  so  faithfully  did  she 
observe  the  rule  of  silence,  that  she  lived  apart  from 
all  human  communication,  and  spoke  only  when  neces- 
sity or  the  good  of  her  neighbor  demanded  it.  When 
speaking  during  recreation  time,  St.  Rita  never  uttered 
an  idle  word,  and  if,  by  chance,  she  heard  any  of  the 
nuns  using  words  she  considered  frivolous,  she  would, 
at  once,  change  the  topic  of  conversation,  and  speak 
with  great  unction  and  prudence  of  the  wonderful  love 
of  Jesus  Christ  for  His  chosen  brides,  or  of  the  holy 
rule  they  were  bound  by  profession  to  follow  and  obey. 
Thus  St.  Rita  said  to  her  sisters  in  religion  what  St. 
Paul  said  to  the  Philippians:  "Our  conversation  is  in 
heaven,"  for  she  always  spoke,  not  only  of  those  things 
that  incline  one  to  think  of  heaven,  but  she  also  con- 
versed interiorly  with  the  citizens  of  heaven.  And  that 
this  interior  conversation  might  suffer  little  or  no  inter- 
ruption, St.  Rita  was  such  a  lover  of  silence,  that  she 
carried  always,  in  her  mouth,  a  little  stone,  to  prevent 
the  movement  of  her  tongue,  so  that  she  could  not  offend 
against  silence  even  inadvertently. 

Her  great  humility  aided  also  to  help  her  keep 
silence,  for  it  prevented  her  often  from  engaging  in  con- 
versation with  the  nuns  when  they  were  assembled  in 
the  recreation  room.  St.  Rita  was,  indeed,  humble,  and 
she  had  so  low  a  conception  of  her  merits,  that  she  looked 
upon  herself  as  not  worthy  to  be  a  servant,  much  less  a 
companion  of  the  other  nuns.  And  to  adorn  and  em- 
bellish the  rich  jewel  of  her  profound  humility,  she  took 


Progress  in  Virtue  During  Religious  Life       103 

the  greatest  care  to  conceal,  as  adroitly  as  she  could, 
the  singular  graces  and  favors  God  bestowed  upon  her, 
lest  vanity  would  destroy  their  merits,  or  human  praise 
or  honors  would  make  her  proud.  But  the  more  the 
humility  of  St.  Rita  sought  to  hide  the  splendor  of  her 
virtues  the  more  they  shone  in  the  house  of  God  for  the 
benefit  of  the  people.  For  having  placed  St.  Rita,  so 
to  speak,  in  the  candelabra  of  His  Church  to  shine  in 
them,  as  the  splendor  of  her  virtues  shone  in  heaven, 
God  was  pleased  to  make  manifest  her  virtues  and  sanc- 
tity to  the  entire  world,  so  that  all  who  stood  in  need  of 
spiritual  succor,  as  well  as  aid  and  assistance  in  tem- 
poral difficulties,  might  have  recourse  to  her  powerful 
intercession. 

The  fame  of  St.  Rita's  virtues  and  sanctity  having 
gone  outside  the  Convent  of  the  Maddalena,  and  even 
beyond  the  hmits  of  the  province  of  Umbria,  multitudes 
came  to  Cascia  to  seek  advice  and  the  aid  of  her  prayers. 
And  though  she  would  have  preferred  to  remain  in  the 
solitude  of  her  convent  cell,  than  to  engage  in  human 
conversation,  or  have  any  intercourse  with  seculars,  her 
great  zeal  in  the  serv^ice  of  God,  and  her  charity  towards 
her  neighbor  prompted  her  to  meet  and  receive  every 
class  and  condition  of  peoples.  Some  sought  her  prayers 
for  the  benefit  of  their  health ;  some  solicited  her  advice 
in  their  temporal  affairs;  some  who  had  grown  indiffer- 
ent in  their  faith  sought  her  instruction ;  and  others,  with 
tears  in  their  eyes  and  on  bended  knees,  urged  her  to 
plead  with  God  to  deliver  them  from  their  sufferings 
and  afflictions.  Very  few  of  the  very  many  who  had 
recourse  to  St.  Rita  were  disappointed.  Many  sick  per- 
sons were  restored  to  perfect  health.  Temporal  diffi- 
culties were  solved  through  her  prudent  advice.  Ene- 
mies were  reconciled.     Peace  was  restored  in  warring 


104  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

families.  Scores  of  indifferent  persons  were  made 
zealous  Christians  by  her  instructions,  and  many  sinners 
renounced  their  evil  ways  and  were  reconciled  to  God, 
after  St.  Rita  had  taught  them  the  real  value  of  a  sin- 
cere act  of  contrition.  There  is  no  doubt,  the  favors 
and  graces  that  St.  Rita  obtained  from  God  for  those 
who  sought  her  aid,  were  the  effects  of  that  wisdom  and 
charity  she  possessed,  for  God  had  endowed  her  with 
infused  knowledge,  and  many  times  when  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  her  neighbor  demanded  it,  she  spoke  elo- 
quently of  the  mysteries  of  our  holy  faith.  And  blest 
with  that  infused  knowledge,  she  excelled,  in  a  heroic 
degree,  in  the  exercise  of  the  theological  virtues,  as  we 
are  told  in  the  Decree  of  her  Beatification. 

The  faith  St.  Rita  possessed  and  practiced  was  so 
fervent  that,  "bringing  into  captivity  every  understand- 
ing," she  was  left  free  to  advance  in  merit.  And  it  was 
also  a  lively  faith,  as  was  manifest  by  the  numberless 
good  works  she  performed,  and  the  learned  instructions 
she  gave  to  the  ignorant  concerning  the  mysteries  of  the 
faith.  St.  Rita  also  possessed  the  virtue  of  hope  in  an 
eminent  degree,  and  this  virtue  was  so  deeply  rooted 
in  her  heart  and  filled  it  so  much,  that  we  are  forced  to 
say  that  h^^  lieart  seemed  to  be  too  small  a  sphere  for 
its  greatness,  for  it  overflowed,  so  to  speak,  to  the  lips 
which  were  constantly  telling  those  who  suffered  afflic- 
tions and  tribulations;  "Have  hope.  Trust  in  God. 
Forget  the  things  that  are  behind  and  stretch  forth  to 
those  things  that  are  before."  St.  Rita's  charity  had  no 
limits  but  charity.  She  was  all  love,  the  love  of  God 
consumed  her,  and  she  was  continually  repeating  these 
words  of  St.  John,  words  embodied  in  the  rule  of  the 
great  St.  Augustine:  "God  is  charity,  and  he  that 
abideth  in  charity,  abideth  in  God,  and  God  in  him." 


Progress  in  Virtue  During  Religious  Life      105 

Every  work  St.  Rita  performed  was  done  according  to 
the  will  of  her  divine  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ.  At  all 
times,  in  season  and  out  of  season,  she  was  ready  to  suc- 
cor and  aid  the  weak  and  infirm,  the  poor  and  the  needy, 
the  afflicted  and  the  sinner,  knowing  well  that  whatever 
she  did  for  her  suffering  neighbor  counted  as  done  for 
Jesus  Christ. 

Like  all  saints,  St.  Rita  had  great  devotion  to  Mary, 
the  immaculate  Mother  of  God,  whose  virtues  she  tried 
to  imitate,  and  every  time  she  saw  an  image  of  the 
Mother  of  God,  she  w^as  accustomed  to  say:  "What  an 
honor  it  is  to  have  the  Mother  of  Jesus  for  my  mother." 

St.  Rita  had  also  great  devotion  to  Jesus  in  the 
Blessed  Sacrament.  And  many  times,  while,  in  chapel, 
meditating  on  that  mystery  of  divine  love,  she  was 
wrapped  in  ecstasy.  Indeed  the  Blessed  Sacrament  be- 
came her  "Bread  of  life,"  and  whenever  she  received  our 
Lord  in  Holy  Communion,  for  hours  afterwards,  she 
experienced  such  consolation  and  joy,  that  she  seemed 
to  be  no  longer  in  the  world,  but  to  be  living  with 
Jesus. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

St.  Rita's  Love  for  Prayer — The  Wonderfui. 
Efficacy  of  Her  Prayers 

^JI^ORN  out  of  time,  we  may  say,  and  really  a  gift 
HUa  of  God  to  her  aged  parents  in  answer  to  their 
"^^  prayers,  St.  Rita  began  to  pray  in  her  earliest 
years.  Sitting  on  the  lap  of  her  mother,  she  learned 
to  pronounce  the  names  of  Jesus  and  Mary,  and  kneel- 
ing at  her  mother's  knees,  she  learned  the  "Our  Father," 
the  "Hail  Mary,"  and  the  "Credo"  that  is  the 
"Apostles'  Creed."  As  St.  Rita  grew  in  years,  her  love 
for  prayer  grew  more  and  more  ardent,  and  we  can 
safely  say,  that  every  day  and  many  times  a  day,  during 
the  years  she  remained  in  the  world,  the  sweet  voice  of 
her  prayers  ascended  to  heaven,  and  charmed  and  cap- 
tivated the  ears  and  the  heart  of  God. 

But  prayerful  as  St.  Rita  was  while  in  the  world, 
it  was  when  she  left  the  world,  that  she  bacame  the  very 
soul  of  prayer,  and  gave  herself  up  to  the  contemplation 
and  meditation  of  the  divine  mysteries  of  our  holy  faith. 
And  because  she  desired  to  get  closer  and  closer  to  her 
divine  Spouse,  like  Mary  Magdalen,  she  spent  hours 
at  the  feet  of  Jesus,  absorbing  the  spiritual  delights  and 
graces  which  fell  like  heavenly  dew  on  her  pure  and 
innocent  soul.  While  meditating  on  the  mystery  of 
the  Incarnation,  astonished  at  the  great  humility  of 

106 


Wonderful  Efficiency  of  Her  Prayers         107 

Jesus  Christ  in  becoming  man,  St.  Rita  often  said  to 
herself:  "Why  art  thou  proud,  O  dust  and  ashes?  Dost 
thou  forget  that  a  God  humihated  and  annihilated  Him- 
self, stooping  from  heaven  to  lift  you  thither?" 

The  favorite  meditation  of  St.  Rita  was  the  Pas- 
sion of  Jesus  Christ,  and  she  had  so  much  compassion 
for  the  sufferings  of  her  sweet  Jesus  that  whenever  she 
fixed  her  gaze  on  a  crucifix,  tears  came  into  her  eyes. 
When  not  otherwise  engaged,  St.  Rita  could  be  found, 
either  in  the  chapel  kneehng  before  the  crucifix,  or  in 
her  little  cell,  where,  as  a  memorial  of  the  Passion,  she 
had  a  few  pictures,  attached  to  the  wall,  representing 
some  scenes  of  the  Sorrowful  Way  of  the  Cross. 

One  of  these  pictures,  as  we  have  told  you  in  another 
chapter,  represented  Mount  Calvary.  Fixing  her  eyes 
on  this  picture,  St.  Rita  contemplated  all  the  many  tor- 
ments Jesus  Christ  had  suffered.  The  heavy  Cross  He 
had  carried  on  His  torn  and  mangled  shoulders;  the 
jibes,  mockeries  and  insults  that  had  accompanied  the 
stripping  of  His  garments;  the  extreme  pain  caused  by 
the  nails  driven  through  His  hands  and  feet;  and  the 
mental  agony  of  Jesus  at  the  thought,  that  all  He  suf- 
fered, pierced  also  the  tender  and  loving  heart  of 
His  sorrowful  and  afflicted  mother.  Continuing  her 
meditation  of  the  other  sufferings  of  Jesus,  her  heart 
would  become  sorrowful,  her  eyes  fountains  of  tears, 
while  from  her  lips  would  come  forth  sobs  and  sighs, 
messengers,  so  to  speak,  of  the  interior  pain  that  she  her- 
self was  suffering  in  her  compassionate  heart. 

Another  picture,  that  hung  on  tlie  walls  of  St.  Rita's 
cell,  represented  the  Holy  Sepulchre  where  the  sacred 
body  of  Jesus  was  placed  after  it  was  taken  down  from 
the  Cross.  While  gazing  at  this  picture,  St.  Rita  had 
always  the  desire  to  die  for  the  world  and  to  be  buried 


108  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

with  Jesus  Christ  in  God.  Nor  could  she  ever  fix  her 
eyes  on  this  picture,  without  saying:  "O  most  sacred 
tomb!  O  holy  arkl  O  celestial  temple!  that  was  worthy 
to  receive  the  sacred  body  of  the  Son  of  God." 

It  is  related  of  St.  Rita,  that,  on  one  occasion,  while 
meditating  before  this  picture,  she  was  wrapped  in 
ecstasy,  and  remained  so  long  unconscious  to  every  one 
and  everything  around  her,  that  the  nuns,  when  they  dis- 
covered her,  beheved  the  soul  of  their  holy  and  beloved 
companion  had  gone  to  a  better  and  a  happier  life. 
St.  Rita  spent  a  good  part  of  the  day,  and  many  hours 
of  the  night,  engaged  in  contemplation  and  meditation, 
and  many  a  time  did  she  feel  a  little  displeased,  when 
the  rising  sun  surprised  her  at  meditation  which  she  had 
begun  at  midnight,  and  she  would  say:  *'Why  do  you 
come  so  quickly?  Do  you  wish  to  deprive  me,  with  your 
small  hght,  of  the  dehghts  my  soul  is  enjoying?  Let 
me  pray,  O  sun !  Let  me  meditate.  My  soul  sees  more 
when  it  contemplates  under  the  shadows  of  the  night, 
than  my  eyes  do  when  aided  by  your  splendor." 

Besides  meditating  on  the  mysteries  of  our  holy 
faith,  St.  Rita  spent  two  hours  each  dsij  petitioning 
heaven  for  favors  and  graces  for  her  own  soul  and  the 
spiritual  and  temporal  good  of  her  neighbor.  She 
prayed  to  the  Eternal  Father  and  asked  Him  pardon 
for  her  sins,  by  virtue  of  that  extreme  love  that 
prompted  Him  to  deliver  up  to  death  His  only  Son 
whose  death  delivered  sinners  from  the  death  of  sin. 
She  prayed  to  the  Son  of  God,  and  asked  Him  to  en- 
lighten her  understanding,  so  that  her  heart  might  never 
stray  away  from  Him  who  is  the  way,  and  the  truth,  and 
the  life.  She  prayed  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  whom  she  con- 
sidered an  ocean  of  love,  and  implored  Him  to  culti- 
vate her  soul  with  the  dew  of  His  love,  so  that  her  heart 


Wonderful  Efficiency  of  Her  Prayers         109 

might  become  a  nursery  of  both  His  fruits  and  His  gifts. 
She  also  prayed  to  the  Blessed  Virgin  and  sought  some 
of  her  super-abundant  humihty ;  to  the  angels  for  purity ; 
and  to  all  the  saints,  for  a  participation  in  the  virtues 
they  practiced  in  this  world.  By  means  of  her  con- 
tinual and  fervent  prayers,  St.  Rita  obtained  many 
singular  favors  and  graces  from  heaven,  not  only  for 
herself,  but  also  for  her  neighbor,  for,  so  efficacious  were 
her  prayers,  that  she  obtained  from  God  whatever  she 
asked. 

We  will  cite  two  remarkable  favors  that  were  the 
results  of  St.  Rita's  fervent  prayers  and  powerful  in- 
tercession. A  young  child,  the  daughter  of  a  woman 
of  Cascia,  was  sick  unto  death.  The  attending  phy- 
sician, and  another  who  was  called  in  consultation,  con- 
fessed that  medical  science  could  not  save  the  child's 
life.  The  poor  mother,  overcome  with  grief,  hastened 
to  the  Maddalena  Convent,  and  earnestly  besought  St. 
Rita  to  ask  God  to  spare  the  life  of  her  only  child. 
Moved  by  pity,  St.  Rita  spoke  kindly  to  the  sorrowful 
mother,  and  consoled  her  by  saying :  "My  good  woman, 
have  faith.  God  is  good.  Your  child  will  not  die. 
You  will  find  her  well  when  you  return  home."  As 
soon  as  the  woman  had  left  her  presence,  St.  Rita 
hastened  to  the  chapel,  and  asked  God  to  spare  the  life 
of  the  dying  child.  Her  prayer  was  heard  and 
answered  immediately,  and  to  the  great  joy  of  the  af- 
flicted mother,  on  her  return  home,  she  found  her  young 
(laughter  cured  of  her  illness. 

The  following  is  another  proof  of  the  intercessory 
power  of  St.  Rita's  prayers.  On  one  occasion,  there 
was  brought  to  St.  Rita  a  woman,  who,  for  many  years 
was  possessed  of  an  evil  spirit  that  tormented  and  mal- 
treated her  most  cruelly.     St.  Rita  lost  no  time  in  show- 


110  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

ing  her  power  over  the  infernal  spirit.  Raising  her  eyes 
to  heaven,  she  offered  a  prayer.  Then  she  made  the 
sign  of  the  Cross  on  the  head  of  the  possessed  and  she 
was  liberated,  at  once,  from  the  power  of  the  evil  tor- 
mentor, who,  when  leaving  the  body  of  the  woman,  ut- 
tered a  loud  and  frightful  shriek. 

The  power  of  St.  Rita  over  the  infernal  spirits  mani- 
fested itself  many  times,  and  especially  while  she  was 
engaged  in  prayer  and  meditation.  Time  and  again 
did  the  devil  try  to  disturb  her  while  she  was  at  medita- 
tion, trying  to  frighten  her  with  loud  howls  and  shrieks, 
and  even  appearing  to  her  under  the  most  hideous  of 
forms.  But  St.  Rita  feared  him  not.  She  always 
drove  him  away  with  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  and  con- 
tinued her  meditation  or  prayers,  as  if  nothing  had 
happened  to  disturb  her. 

St.  Rita  was  also  an  example  of  prayer  to  her  holy 
companions  of  the  Maddalena,  and  very  frequently  did 
she  urge  them  to  obey  faithfully  the  command  of  Jesus 
Christ :  Watch  and  pray.  Saying  to  them :  "My  be- 
loved sisters:  since  we  offend  our  sweet  Jesus,  every 
day,  in  thought,  word,  deed  and  the  omission  of  good 
works,  we  should  pray  every  day,  and  every  hour  of  the 
day,  and  weep  for  our  offenses  against  so  kind  and  lov- 
ing a  Father,  Master  and  Spouse," 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

St.  Rita,  Praying  Before  a  Crucifix,  Receives  a 
Miraculous  Wound  on  the  Forehead 

^I^NOWING  that  prayer  is  both  a  spiritual  nourish- 
^w\^  ment  of  the  soul,  and  a  celestial  dew  that  fertilizes 
^^  and  prepares  the  soul  to  produce  an  abundant 
harvest  of  virtues,  St.  Rita  became  full  of  ardent  desires 
to  taste  of  this  sacred  nectar,  so  that  she  might  satisfy 
that  burning  thirst  she  suffered,  when  she  had  become 
hydropical,  so  to  speak,  with  the  love  of  her  divine 
Spouse,  Jesus  Christ.  And  coveting  to  drink  of  the 
bitter  waters  of  His  Passion,  like  St.  Augustine,  her 
spiritual  father  and  ours,  St.  Rita  considered  Jesus 
Christ  a  sweet  honey-comb,  distributing  sweet  and 
delicious  honey  to  all  who  seek  Him  and  follow  Him 
on  the  bitter  way  of  the  Cross.  She  contemplated 
Jesus  Christ,  as  the  Royal  Prophet  had  foretold,  en- 
circled by  His  executioners,  who,  like  bees,  surrounded 
Him,  in  order  that  through  Him  she  might  partake  of 
the  honey  of  Redemption.  She  looked  upon  Jesus 
Christ,  as  the  miraculous  dew  that  had  fallen  on  the 
fleece,  in  the  time  of  Gideon,  and  considered  it  a  fore- 
shadow of  His  most  Holy  Incarnation.  And  consid- 
ered, as  did  St.  Chrysologus,  that  Jesus  Christ  was  tor- 
mented on  the  cross  and  his  side  pierced  with  a  lance, 
so  that  a  copious  rain  of  blood  and  water  might  fall 

111 


112  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cos  da 

upon  and  sanctify  a  world  of  souls.  And  finally,  keep- 
ing before  her  eyes  the  mysterious  ladder  she  had  seen, 
in  a  vision,  she  considered  it  a  figure  of  the  cross  raised 
on  Calvary,  and  actually  desired  to  take  upon  her 
shoulders  the  Cross,  so  that  she  might  feel,  at  least  some 
of  the  torments  of  the  Passion  of  her  crucified  Lord. 
The  Lord  heard  the  fervent  prayers  and  anxious  desire 
of  St.  Rita,  and  looking  with  favor  on  His  faithful 
bride,  He  deigned  to  answer  her  prayers  and  grant  her 
desire  in  a  most  miraculous  manner. 

On  one  occasion,  there  came  to  Cascia,  to  preach  in 
the  Church  of  St.  Mary,  a  Franciscan  friar,  named 
Blessed  James  of  Mount  Brandone.  This  good  father 
had  a  great  reputation  for  learning  and  eloquence,  and 
his  words  had  the  power  of  moving  the  most  hardened 
hearts.  As  St.  Rita  was  desirous  to  hear  so  celebrated 
a  preacher,  she,  accompanied  by  other  nuns,  went  to  the 
said  church.  The  subject  of  Father  James'  sermon  was 
the  Passion  and  Death  of  Jesus  Christ.  With  words, 
as  if  they  were  dictated  by  heaven,  the  eloquent  Fran- 
ciscan told  the  old,  old  story  ever  new  of  the  great  suffer- 
ings of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  But  the 
dominant  idea  of  all  the  Franciscan  said,  seemed  to  be 
centered  in  the  excessive  sufferings  caused  by  the  crown 
of  thorns.  The  words  of  the  preacher  penetrated  deep- 
ly into  the  soul  of  St.  Rita,  they  filled  her  heart  to  over- 
flowing with  sadness,  tears  were  in  her  eyes,  and  she 
wept  as  if  her  sympathetic  heart  would  break.  When 
the  sermon  was  over,  St.  Rita  returned  to  the  con- 
vent carrying  in  her  bosom  every  word  Father  James 
had  said  concerning  the  crown  of  thorns.  After  mak- 
ing a  visit  to  the  Blessed  Sacrament,  St.  Rita  retired  to 
a  small  private  oratory,  in  which  today  her  body  reposes, 
and,  like  the  wounded  heart,  that  she  was,  desirous  of 


St,  Rita  Receives  a  Wound  on  Forehead     113 

drinking  of  the  waters  of  the  Lord  to  slake  the  thirst  of 
the  sufferings  she  anxiously  coveted,  she  prostrated  her- 
self at  the  foot  of  a  crucifix,  and  began  to  meditate  on 
the  pains  our  Saviour  suffered  from  the  crown  of  thorns 
which  penetrated  deeply  into  His  sacred  temples.  And, 
with  the  desire  to  suffer  some  of  the  pain  her  divine 
Spouse  suffered,  she  asked  Jesus  to  give  her,  at  least, 
one  of  the  many  thorns  of  the  crown  of  thorns  that  tor- 
mented His  sacred  head,  saying  to  Him:  "O  my  God 
and  crucified  Lord!  O  you  who  were  innocent  and 
without  sin  or  crime !  O  you  who  have  suffered  so  much 
for  love  of  me!  You  have  suffered  arrest,  buffeting, 
insults,  a  scourging,  a  crown  of  thorns,  and  finally  a 
cruel  death  on  the  Cross.  Why  do  you  wish  that  I, 
your  unworthy  servant,  who  was  the  cause  of  your  suf- 
ferings and  your  pains,  should  have  no  share  in  your 
sufferings?  Make  me,  O  my  sweet  Jesus,  a  partici- 
pant, if  not  of  all  of  your  Passion,  at  least  of  a  part  of 
it.  Recognizing  my  indignity  and  my  unworthiness,  I 
do  not  ask  you  to  imprint  on  my  body,  as  you  did  in  the 
hearts  of  St.  Augustine  and  St.  Francis,  the  wounds 
that  you  still  preserve  as  precious  rubies  in  heaven.  I 
do  not  ask  you  to  stamp  your  holy  Cross  as  you  did  in 
the  heart  of  St.  Monica.  Nor  do  I  ask  you  to  form  in 
my  heart  the  instruments  of  your  Passion,  as  you  did 
in  the  heart  of  my  holy  sister  St.  Clare  of  Montefalco. 
I  only  ask  you  for  one  of  the  seventy-two  thorns  which 
pierced  your  head  and  caused  you  so  much  pain,  so  that 
I  may  feel  a  part  of  the  pain  you  felt.  O  my  loving 
Saviour!  Do  not  refuse  me  this  favor.  Do  not  deny 
me  this  grace.  I  will  not  leave  here  consoled,  if  you 
send  me  away  without  so  desired  a  pledge  of  your  love." 
When  St.  Rita  had  concluded  her  prayerful  peti- 
tion, her  divine  Spouse,  not  wishing  to  resist  any  longer 


114  Life  of  Sister  St  Rita  of  Cascia 

the  desire  of  His  faithful  bride,  granted  her  request. 
Making  of  His  crown  of  thorns,  so  to  speak,  a  bow,  and 
of  one  of  the  thorns,  an  arrow,  Jesus  fired  it  at  the 
forehead  of  St.  Rita  with  such  impetus  and  force,  that 
it  penetrated  the  flesh  and  bone,  and  remained  fixed 
in  the  middle  of  the  forehead,  leaving  a  wound  that 
lasted  all  her  life,  and  even  to  this  day,  the  scar  of 
the  wound  remains  plainly  visible.  The  pain  that  fol- 
lowed, when  the  thorn  penetrated  the  forehead  of  St. 
Rita,  was  so  acute  and  intense,  that  she  fell  into  a  swoon, 
and  she  would  have  died,  then  and  there,  had  not  Jesus, 
who  wounded  her,  preserved  her  life,  so  that  she  might 
feel,  as  she  had  earnestly  desired,  at  least,  a  part  of 
the  pains  and  torments  of  His  Passion.  On  recovering 
herself,  and  knowing  that  she  had  been  favored  with  a 
signal  and  precious  token,  St.  Rita  returned  fervent 
and  heartfelt  thanks  to  her  divine  Lover  and  Spouse. 

St.  Rita  left  the  oratory  bearing  on  her  forehead 
the  sacred  wound,  and  on  her  countenance  evident  signs 
of  intense  suffering.  On  seeing  the  wound,  the  nuns 
were  more  than  surprised,  but  they  were  ignorant  of 
the  mystery.  St.  Rita,  however,  guardian  of  the  royal 
secret,  and  knowing  how  important  it  was  to  conceal 
the  sacrament  the  Sovereign  King  had  confided  to  her, 
hid  it  in  her  bosom  and  revealed  it  to  no  one. 

The  pain  caused  by  the  wound  increased  day  by 
day,  and  the  wound  itself  assumed  so  ugly  and  revolt- 
ing an  appearance,  that  St.  Rita  became  an  object  of 
nausea  to  some  of  the  nuns,  who  could  not  bear  even  to 
look  at  her.  Not  wishing  to  be  the  cause  of  the  least 
inconvenience  to  the  nuns,  St.  Rita  remained  nearly  all 
the  time  in  her  cell  engaged  in  divine  contemplation,  and 
glorying,  even  in  the  midst  of  the  pains  of  the  wound 
caused  by  an  arrow  of  divine  love.     Sometimes  the  nuns 


St,  Rita  Receives  a  Wound  on  Forehead       115 

visited  her  in  her  cell,  either  to  bring  her  some  nourish- 
ment, or  to  speak  a  few  words  with  her,  for  they  all 
loved  her  dearly.  And  as  often  as  they  came,  they  de- 
parted edified  by  her  wonderful  patience. 

But  St.  Rita  was  happy,  even  in  the  midst  of  her 
sufferings,  and  when  she  felt  that  her  sufferings  were 
becoming  more  intense,  she  said  to  her  divine  Spouse: 
"O  loving  Jesus,  increase  my  patience  according  as  my 
sufferings  increase."  This  prayer,  like  all  the  prayers 
of  St.  Rita,  was  answered,  and  so  great  was  her  patience 
amidst  all  the  pain  she  suffered,  that  she  called  the  little 
worms  which  were  generated  by  the  putrid  humor  of  her 
wound — "her  angels" — for  they  increased  her  suffer- 
ings whenever  they  moved  or  fed  themselves  on  her 
tender  and  aching  flesh,  thus  giving  her  new  occasions 
to  practice  patience  and  to  merit  more  and  more  the 
love  and  esteem  of  her  divine  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

St.  Rita's  Journey  to  Rome 

AS  WE  have  already  observed  in  another  chapter, 
the  Sovereign  Pontiff,  Pope  T^  icholas  V,  had  pro- 
claimed the  year  of  our  Lord  1450,  Jubilee  year; 
and  knowing  that  some  of  the  nuns  of  her  convent  were 
preparing  to  make  the  journey  to  the  Eternal  City, 
to  gain  the  treasure  of  indulgences,  granted  by  the 
Church  on  such  solemn  occasions,  St.  Rita  desired  also 
to  go  to  Rome,  for,  in  her  great  hmnility,  she  believed 
that  she  stood  more  in  need  of  the  graces  of  the  Jubilee 
than  did  her  sister  nuns.  With  her  heart  full  of  holy 
desire,  St.  Rita  went  to  the  cell  of  the  superioress,  and, 
prostrating  herself  at  her  feet,  humbly  asked  permission 
to  go  to  Rome  with  the  other  nuns.  The  superioress, 
gazing  at  the  ugly  wound  on  St.  Rita's  forehead,  judged 
that  she  had  sufficient  reason  to  refuse  St.  Rita's  re- 
quest, for  she  beheved  that  the  very  sight  of  the  wound 
would  be  the  cause  of  scandal  to  all  who  might  see  it, 
since  the  wound  was  on  that  part  of  the  forehead  which 
could  not  be  covered  or  concealed.  Hence  the  superior- 
ess felt  herself  justified  in  withholding  her  permission 
if  the  wound  did  not  heal,  and  dismissed  St.  Rita  with 
these  words :  "Be  resigned  and  consoled.  God  will  ac- 
cept your  good  and  worthy  desire  and  will  reward  you." 
St.  Rita  heard  with  profound  submission  the  words  of 

116 


St,  Ritas  Journey  to  Rome  117 

her  superioress,  and  recognizing  that  the  wound,  being 
incurable,  would,  without  doubt,  prevent  her  from  go- 
ing to  Rome  with  her  sisters,  she  hastened,  at  once, 
to  her  divine  Spouse,  as  to  the  only  refuge  in  all  her 
necessities,  and  kneeling  at  His  sacred  feet  spoke  to 
Him,  as  never  before  spoke  a  bride  to  her  bridegroom: 
"O  my  most  sweet  Jesus,  crucified  for  love  of  me! 
You  know  it  has  always  been  my  desire  to  serve  you, 
though,  through  neghgence,  I  have  not  served  you  as 
I  ought.  Nor  have  I  loved  you  as  I  should,  vile  crea- 
ture that  I  am,  and  the  beneficiary  of  numberless  favors 
and  graces  from  your  generous  hands.  Notwithstand- 
ing my  unworthiness,  O  my  sweet  Jesus,  grant  me  the 
request  I  am  about  to  ask.  I  desire  to  go  to  Rome  to 
enjoy  those  spiritual  gifts  and  blessings  which  your 
Vicar  grants  to  all  the  faithful  with  liberal  hands  dur- 
ing the  Jubilee.  Do  not  deprive  me  of  that  great 
treasure  which  is  the  price  of  your  most  precious  Blood 
and  most  sacred  Passion,  a  memorial  of  wliich  you 
deigned  to  place  on  the  forehead  of  your  unworthy  ser- 
vant, by  means  of  one  of  the  sharp  thorns  that  pene- 
trated your  sacred  head.  You  know  with  what  patience 
I  bear  my  wound.  You  know  the  joy  I  feel,  because 
I  have  been  wounded  by  one  of  the  instrimients  of  your 
Passion.  And  you  know  the  thanks  I  give  you  con- 
tinually for  having  deigned  to  make  me  a  sharer  of  a 
small  portion  of  your  Passion.  I  do  not  dare  to  implore 
you  to  take  away  my  wound  so  that  I  may  go  to  Rome. 
I  would,  indeed,  be  ungrateful  if  I  wished  to  return  to 
you  that  sacred  gift  your  loving  and  liberal  generosity 
has  given  me.  I  resign  my  will  to  your  holy  will.  I 
wish  to  conform  myself  to  your  sacred  desires.  Even  if 
you  heal  my  wound,  I  do  not  ask  you  to  relieve  me  of 
the  pains  I  suffer.     I  ask  you,  rather,  to  permit  the 


118  Ltife  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

pains  to  remain,  so  that  I  may  suffer  interiorly,  though 
you  take  away  the  exterior  wound  while  I  will  be  out- 
side my  convent." 

The  humble  request  was  pleasing  to  the  Lord,  and 
as  it  was  His  will  that  St.  Rita  should  make  the  pil- 
grimage to  Rome,  He  healed  her  wound  at  once.  St. 
Rita,  observing  that  the  wound  of  her  forehead  had 
disappeared,  gave  thanks  to  God  for  so  signal  a  favor, 
and  leaving  the  oratory,  she  returned  to  the  cell  of  the 
superioress.  Words  cannot  express  the  surprise  and  as- 
tonisliment  of  the  superioress  and  the  nuns,  at  behold- 
ing so  sudden  a  cure,  and  they  confessed  that  only  the 
medicine  of  God,  applied  by  the  angel  Raphael,  could 
have  accomplished  the  healing  of  such  an  ugly  and  loath- 
ful a  wound.  There  was  now  nothing  to  prevent  St. 
Rita  from  making  the  journey  to  Rome  with  the  other 
nuns.  The  superioress  granted  willingly  and  gladly  the 
permission,  and  said  kindly  to  St.  Rita:  "Sister,  hu- 
man ignorance  can  never  prevail  again  the  divine  dis- 
position." 

Accordingly,  the  nuns  of  the  Maddalena  started 
on  their  journey  to  Rome,  delighted  that  St.  Rita  was 
to  be  of  their  number;  and  though  they  were  provided 
with  some  means  for  the  journey,  the  means  were  insuf- 
ficient, hence  St.  Rita  took  it  upon  herself  to  solicit 
alms  along  the  way.  The  holy  and  humble  nun  did 
this,  not  only  because  she  was  a  lover  of  evangehcal 
poverty,  but  also  because  she  wished  to  exercise  the  func- 
tion of  a  beggar  for  the  sake  of  her  divine  Spouse  Jesus 
Christ.  To  some  of  the  nuns  who  did  not  look  with 
favor  at  her  asldng  alms  of  the  passersby,  she  said  with 
humiHty:  "By  begging,  I  am  acting  in  accordance 
with  the  state  I  profess,  and  I  also  give  my  neighbor  the 


St,  Ritas  Journey  to  Rome  119 

occasion  of  exercising  charity  and  of  meriting  an  eternal 
reward  in  heaven." 

As  a  reward  for  the  sincerity  with  which  St.  Rita 
despised  earthly  riches,  God  made  use  of  the  following 
incident  to  enhance  her  heroic  poverty,  and  her  abso- 
lute confidence  in  His  providence.  One  day,  when  the 
nuns  were  actually  without  a  cent  to  buy  food  or  pay 
for  a  lodging  place  for  the  night,  St.  Rita  happened  to 
see  a  gold  coin  on  the  roadside  as  she  walked  along. 
Stooping  down  she  picked  up  the  money,  and  gave 
thanks  to  God  for  the  golden  gift.  But  St.  Rita,  who 
confided  in  the  providence  of  God  which  prompted  the 
alms  of  the  charitable,  threw  the  money  into  a  river.  All 
the  nuns  were  surprised  at  what  she  had  done.  Some 
of  them  scolded  her,  while  others  even  said  she  had  com- 
mitted a  sinful  act,  considering  their  needy  circum- 
stances, and  they  added  that  the  money  had  been  sent 
by  God  to  aid  them  in  their  need. 

St.  Rita,  looking  at  her  sisters,  raised  her  eyes  to 
heaven,  and  falling  on  the  ground,  she  kissed  the  earth, 
and,  with  the  sweet  voice  of  an  angel,  said:     "Hear 
me,  dear  sisters.     Do  not  be  displeased  with  me  because 
I  threw  the  money  in  the  river.     The  truth  is  this: 
though  the  small  coin  had  little  weight,  to  me,  it  became 
so  heavy,  that  I  did  not  have  the  strength  to  carry  it 
any  longer."     Then  she  exhorted  them  to  have  con- 
fidence and  faith  in  God,  assuring  them  that  they  would 
not  suffer  need  of  anything  on  the  journey.     "Because," 
said  she,  "God,  who  up  to  the  present,  has  supplied  all 
our  needs,  will,  with  the  same  generous  liberality,  give 
us  our  daily  bread,  and  will  even  give  us  what  He  did 
not  have  Himself,  a  place  to  lay  our  heads."     All  the 
nuns  were  greatly  consoled  and  edified  by  what  St.  Rita 
had  said,  continued  their  journey  in  a  happy  state  of 


120  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

mind.  And  seeing  with  what  charity  every  one  received 
them,  they  learned  to  love  poverty  as  they  had  never 
loved  it  before,  and  thanked  God  for  all  the  liberality 
He  had  bestowed  upon  them,  through  the  merits  of  their 
holy  sister  St.  Rita. 

When  St.  Rita  and  the  other  nuns  arrived  in  Rome, 
they  visited  together  the  station  churches  prescribed  to 
be  visited,  and  prayed  with  great  devotion  and  atten- 
tion to  gain  the  indulgence  of  the  Jubilee.  The  great 
devotion  and  piety  manifested  by  St.  Rita,  as  she  went 
from  station  to  station,  was  very  noticeable,  not  only  to 
her  sister  nuns,  but  also  to  thousands  of  pilgrims,  many 
of  whom  cried  out  in  admiration:  "That  Augustinian 
nun  is  an  angel  on  earth." 

After  having  visited  the  sepulchres  of  the  martyrs 
and  other  places  of  holy  interest  in  the  city  of  St.  Peter, 
St.  Rita  returned  to  her  convent  with  the  other  nuns, 
who,  edified  by  her  singular  piety  during  all  the  time 
of  the  pligrimage,  gave  thanks  to  God  for  having  given 
them  such  a  holy  companion,  and  for  the  happiness  they 
felt  in  returning  to  their  convent.  Especially  were  the 
poor  and  afflicted  of  Cascia  rejoiced,  and  they  also 
thanked  God  when  they  heard  the  glad  and  good  news 
that  their  beloved  Sister  Rita  had  returned  from  Rome. 
Not  one  of  the  nuns  felt  happier  than  St.  Rita  did  in 
returning  to  her  beloved  Maddalena,  and  as  she  stood  on 
the  steps  of  the  convent  before  she  entered,  a  singular 
joy  filled  her  heart,  her  pale  face  became  flushed  with 
heavenly  gladness  as  she  stepped  across  the  threshold, 
and,  at  that  very  moment,  the  old  wound  of  her  fore- 
head became  visible,  and  she  began  to  suffer  intense 
pains.  Naturally  the  nuns  were  surprised  at  seeing  the 
disfigured  forehead  of  St.  Rita,  but  they  recognized, 
with  tears  in  their  eyes,  that  the  renewal  of  the  old 


St.  Ritas  Journey  to  Rome  121 

wound  was  in  reality  a  gift  of  God,  and  that  he  had 
healed  it  so  that  St.  Rita  might  make  the  journey  to 
Rome. 

Dating  from  that  day  St.  Rita's  life  was,  so  to  speak, 
a  passion.  She  suffered  continually  the  most  acute  and 
excruciating  pains,  which  were  augmented  not  only  by 
the  strong  offensive  odor  that  came  from  the  wound,  but 
also  by  the  little  worms  which  dwelt  in  the  wound.  St. 
Rita  suffered  all  with  unspeakable  patience,  and  when- 
ever anv  of  the  little  worms  would  fall  to  the  floor,  she 
would  pick  them  up  with  care  and  replace  them  in  the 
wound,  so  that  she  might  suffer  more  and  more,  in 
memory  of  her  thorn-crowned  Spouse  who  had  suffered 
so  much  for  her.  St.  Rita  suffered  with  much  joy  the 
torments  the  little  worms  caused,  and,  one  day,  being 
asked  what  were  those  little  worms  that  appeared  in 
her  wound,  she  responded  with  a  smile,  saying:  "They 
are  my  little  angels."  She  called  them  thus  because 
they  were  instruments  for  testing  her  patience,  and  they 
reminded  her  constantly  of  the  torment  the  crown  of 
thorns  caused  her  loving  Jesus. 

St.  Rita  had  to  retire  and  live  again  in  the  solitude 
of  her  cell  to  avoid  inconveniencing  the  other  nuns  with 
the  sight  of  the  wound.  Her  solitary  life  increased  the 
already  rich  treasure  of  her  merits.  She  continued  her 
penitential  exercises,  prayers  and  meditation,  until  the 
time  came  when  she  left  this  vale  of  tears,  after  having 
suffered  a  continuous  martyrdom  for  fifteen  years,  as 
appears  from  the  Process  of  her  Beatification. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

St.  Rita's  Illness  and  the  Signs  that  Qualify  Her 

Sanctity 

^jJ'OR  FOUR  years  after  her  return  from  Rome, 
^r  St.  Rita  suffered  more  pain  from  the  wound  on 
^^  her  forehead  than  before  she  made  the  journey  to 
Rome,  so  that  her  hfe  became  really  a  martyrdom. 
Moved  with  compassion  for  her  suffering,  or  pleased 
with  her  wonderful  patience,  the  Son  of  God  came 
from  heaven  to  visit  and  console  her  with  His  divine 
presence.  This  divine  visit  filled  the  soul  of  St.  Rita 
with  extreme  delight  and  gratification,  and  her  heart 
was  so  consumed  by  the  words  of  her  divine  Spouse, 
that,  having  sunk  her  understanding  in  the  extreme 
bliss  she  enjoyed  from  gazing  on  the  divine  beauty  of 
Jesus,  she  would  have  broken  the  earthly  bonds  that 
detained  her  soul  in  the  prison  of  her  body,  to  enjoy 
forever  the  happiness  she  saw,  were  she  permitted  to 
do  so.  St.  Rita  gazed  attentively  at  her  beloved  Spouse, 
who,  like  a  flower  from  the  heavenly  paradise,  and  a  lily 
from  the  celestial  valleys,  invited  her  to  satisfy  her 
thirst  and  fill  her  heart  with  delights,  by  enjoying  the 
sweetness  His  divine  presence  cast  around  her.  But 
recognizing  that  the  ocean  of  happiness  in  which  she 
was  engulfed  was  only  temporal,  and  thirsting  to  enjoy 
the  eternal,  she  ardently  desired  to  follow  her  divine 

122 


Signs  That  Qualify  St,  Ritas  Santity        123 

Spouse  who  disappeared  from  her  view,  after  He  had 
given  her  a  foretaste  of  what  His  chosen  ones  enjoy- 
in  heaven. 

After  our  Lord  had  disappeared,  there  remained  in 
the  heart  of  St.  Rita  so  deep  a  wound  that  she  became 
so  ill  with  divine  love,  suffering  so  violent  an  attack  of 
fever,  that  she  was  obHged  to  betake  herself  to  her  poor 
and  hard  bed,  whereon  she  lay,  more  dead  than  alive, 
without  anyone  knowing  the  cause  of  her  illness.     Thus 
for  four  long  and  weary  years,  St.  Rita  suffered  the 
pains  of  love,  in  order  that  the  gold  of  her  patience 
might  be  refined,  and  that  she  might  make  a  new  ring, 
set  w^ith  the  most  precious  jewels,  which  she  would  wear 
at  the  celebration  of  her  espousals  with  her  divine  Lord, 
when  she  made  her  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  His 
glory.     Besides  the  pains  of  her  illness,  she  suffered  the 
torments  of  the  wound  on  her  forehead,  and  these  tor- 
ments were  made  more  poignant  by  the  continual  move- 
ments of  the  little  worms  which  had  also  increased  in 
number.     But  anxious  to  suffer  more  and  more,  St.  Rita 
bore  every  pain  of  her  agony  with  the  most  admirable 
patience,  and  during  all  the  year  of  her  illness,  she 
never  uttered  a  single  sigh  or  word  of  complaint,  but 
respired  rather,  in  all  her  actions,  the  celestial  love  that 
was  consuming  her  heart  with  the  flames  of  the  divine 
fire.     Having  become  ill  with  divine  love,  because  her 
beloved  Spouse  had  left  her  after  a  short  visit,  St.  Rita 
experienced  a  love,  strong  as  death,  which,  however, 
did  not  take  away  her  life  but  rather  spared  it,  so  that 
she  actually  suffered  the  pains  and  agony  of  death  with- 
out dying.     However,  in  the  midst  of  all  her  afflictions, 
St.  Rita  sought  no  human  rehef.     Her  chief  delight  was 
to  feed  her  soul  and  body  with  the  bread  that  came  down 
from  heaven,  and  to  quench  her  thirst  with  the  bitter 


124  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

chalice  of  the  Passion  of  her  divine  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ. 
Thus  for  four  years  her  Hf e  was  really  miraculous,  nour- 
ished only  by  the  Body  and  Blood  of  Jesus  Christ. 

To  show  how  dear  St.  Rita  was  to  her  divine  Spouse, 
and  to  make  manifest  the  fact  that  St.  Rita  can  obtain, 
even  the  impossible,  from  God  if  she  ask  it,  divine  provi- 
dence disposed  her,  while  she  was  ill,  to  ask  that  a  flower 
and  two  figs  be  brought  her,  from  the  little  garden  which 
St.  Rita,  at  one  time,  owned  and  cultivated  with  her 
own  hands.  A  garden  which  could  be  truly  called  the 
inheritance  of  God,  and  the  garden  of  her  heavenly 
Spouse,  because  she  had  sold  it  before  entering  the  con- 
vent, and  had  distributed  the  proceeds  amongst  His 
needy  poor. 

One  day,  in  the  month  of  January,  a  cousin  of  St. 
Rita's  came  to  the  Maddalena  Convent  to  visit  her. 
The  visit  was  a  short  one,  for  that  particular  day  St. 
Rita  was  very  iU  and  suffered  much.  On  taking  her 
leave,  her  relative  asked  St.  Rita  if  she  could  do  any 
favor  for  her.  "Yes,  cousin,"  said  the  saint;  "bring  me 
a  rose  from  the  garden  of  my  old  home  in  Rocca  Por- 
rena."  St.  Rita's  request  surprised  her  cousin,  who 
thought  that  perhaps  her  mind  was  affected  by  her  ill- 
ness, and  besides,  as  it  was  midwinter,  and  the  chmate 
of  Rocca  Porrena  exceeding  cold,  her  relative  and  the 
nuns  who  were  in  attendance  could  not  be  persuaded 
that  the  rose  could  be  found.  Nevertheless,  to  humor 
the  saint,  her  cousin  told  her  that  she  would  try  to  fulfil 
the  errand,  though  she  thought  it  would  be  impossible 
to  find  what  she  asked  for.  St.  Rita  responded:  "My 
dear  cousin,  there  is  nothing  impossible  to  God."  The 
security  with  which  St.  Rita  spoke  these  words,  deter- 
mined her  cousin  to  set  out,  at  once,  for  Rocca  Porrena, 
and  to  her  great  astonishment  and  amazement,  on  en- 


Signs  That  Qualify  St.  Rita's  Sanctity         125 

tering  the  garden,  she  saw,  on  a  sapless  and  leafless 
rosebush,  a  beautiful  red  rose  in  full  bloom.  She  plucked 
the  rose,  and  returned  to  Cascia  as  quickly  as  possible 
and  gave  the  rose  to  St.  Rita.  The  saint  received  the 
rose,  with  great  joy  and  gladness,  and  a  heavenly  smile 
lighted  up  her  countenance  as  she  kissed  it  reverently, 
while  her  heart  gave  thanks  to  God,  as  she  contemplated 
in  that  rose  her  sweet  Jesus  crowned  with  thorns.  St. 
Rita  then  handed  the  miraculous  flower  to  the  superi- 
oress, and  from  her  hand  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  all 
the  nuns,  who,  after  admiring  its  marvellous  beauty, 
returned  fervent  thanks  to  God,  who,  to  make  manifest 
the  sanctity  of  their  beloved  sister  Rita,  had  caused  a 
most  beautiful  rose  to  grow  in  the  midst  of  a  cold  winter. 
To  commemorate  this  miraculous  event,  roses  are  blessed 
each  year  in  all  the  churches  of  the  Augustinian  Order 
on  the  feast  of  St.  Rita  and  distributed  to  the  faithful. 

Shortly  after  the  miracle  of  the  rose,  God  wrought 
another  miracle  at  the  request  of  St.  Rita.  On  the  oc- 
casion of  another  visit  to  the  convent,  in  the  same  month 
of  January,  St.  Rita  asked  her  cousin  to  go  and  bring 
two  figs  she  would  find  on  a  certain  frozen  fig  tree  in 
the  garden  at  Rocca  Porrena.  This  time,  without  the 
least  doubt  in  her  mind,  the  woman  hastened  to  bring 
the  figs.  She  had  no  difficulty  in  finding  the  tree  St. 
Rita  had  described,  and  on  it  were  two  ripe  and  luscious 
figs.  With  no  less  joy  than  admiration,  at  seeing  this 
second  miracle,  she  picked  the  figs  and  brought  them  to 
St.  Rita.  St.  Rita  received  the  figs  with  the  greatest 
joy,  and  again  did  the  nuns  thank  and  praise  God  for 
having  qualified,  for  the  second  time,  the  sanctity  of 
their  holy  and  beloved  sister.  But  St.  Rita,  elevating 
her  spirit  to  a  contemplation  of  the  mysterious,  con- 
sidered the  two  miracles  a  warning  that  the  time  was 


126  Life  of  Sister  St,  Bit  a  of  Cascia 

near  at  hand,  when  she  would  pass  from  this  life  to 
enjoy  for  all  eternity,  the  incorruptible  flowers  and 
seasoned  fruits  of  the  celestial  paradise. 


CHAPTER  XXVIl. 

St.  Rita's  Happy  Death 

T.  RITA  knowing  that  the  miracles  of  the  figs 
and  the  rose  were  divine  predictions  of  her  coming 
death,  she  already  seemed  to  hear  the  very  same 
words  that  the  divine  Bridegroom  of  the  Canticles  spoke 
lovingly  to  His  spouse:  "Arise,  make  haste,  my  love, 
my  dove,  my  beautiful  one,  and  come.  For  winter  is 
now  past,  the  flowers  have  appeared,  and  the  fig  tree 
hath  put  forth  her  green  figs.  Show  me  thy  face,  and 
let  thy  voice  sound  in  my  ears:  for  thy  voice  is  sweet, 
and  thy  face  comely." 

St.  Rita  considered  these  words  as  spoken  to  herself, 
because  from  the  day  she  saw  the  beautiful  and  mar- 
vellous rose  and  the  ripe  figs,  she  was  certain  that  the 
time  was  near,  when  the  mortal  bonds  that  bound  her 
to  this  life  would  be  burst  asunder,  and  she  would  leave 
this  valley  of  sorrow  and  tears,  to  go  to  enjoy  forever 
that  life  and  that  happiness  which  she  most  ardently 
desired,  with  her  divine  Spouse  and  Master,  Jesus 
Christ. 

To  make  St.  Rita  sure  and  certain  of  her  near  de- 
parture from  this  world,  and  to  invite  her  to  the  joys  and 
dehghts  of  the  celestial  paradise,  Jesus  Christ,  accom- 
panied by  His  blessed  Mother,  appeared  to  St.  Rita  a 
short  time  before  her  death,  and  thus  said  to  her:     "I 

127 


128  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Casda 

am  your  celestial  Spouse,  who  kindled  in  your  heart 
the  fii'e  of  divine  love,  and  filled  your  soul  with  vir- 
tues, in  accordance  with  your  ardent  desires.  I  am  now 
come  to  tell  you  glad  and  joyful  news.  Rita,  within  a 
few  days,  you  will  depart  from  this  world,  to  enjoy  an 
eternal  rest  in  your  celestial  country." 

This  visit  of  Jesus  Christ  and  His  most  blessed 
Mother  filled  St.  Rita's  heart  and  soul  with  a  flood  of 
unspeakable  joy.  She  knew  now  that  the  winter  of  her 
torments  and  sufferings  was  at  an  end,  and  that  the 
gates  of  heaven  were  soon  to  be  opened  to  receive  her. 
A  struggle  was  now  going  on  between  the  body  and 
soul  of  St.  Rita.  Her  body,  though  weakened  and 
emaciated  by  fasting  and  penance,  wished  to  retain  the 
soul;  and  the  soul  wished  to  break  the  prison  bars  of 
the  body  to  be  with  Christ,  to  whom  St.  Rita  was  already 
united,  so  that  she  could  cry  out  with  the  Apostle  St. 
Paul:  "And  I  live,  now  not  I — though  detained  in 
this  valley  of  tears — but  Christ  liveth  in  me."  Many 
and  fervent  were  the  heartfelt  thanks  that  St.  Rita  gave 
to  Jesus  for  having  favored  her  with  His  divine  pres- 
ence, nor  did  she  forget  to  thank  the  Blessed  Virgin 
Mary,  the  sweet  Mother  of  her  divine  Spouse,  whom 
she  loved  with  a  most  tender  and  ardent  love. 

When  the  nuns  of  the  Maddalena  learned  that  St. 
Rita  had  been  favored  wdth  a  vision  of  Jesus  Christ  and 
His  most  blessed  Mother,  and  that  it  had  been  revealed 
to  her  that  she  would  soon  leave  them  to  be  united  with 
her  divine  Spouse  who  was  their  Spouse  also,  they 
kneeled  around  her  bed,  and  gazed,  with  tearful  eyes, 
on  their  beloved  sister,  whose  face  was  radiant  with 
heavenly  joy,  as  she  spoke  these  humble  and  tender 
words:  "My  dear  superioress  and  sisters:  The  time 
is  at  hand  when  I  must  go  to  live  with  my  beloved 


St  Ritas  Happy  Death  129 

Spouse.  I  may  have  offended  you,  by  not  loving  you 
enough,  or  by  not  being  at  times  as  obedient  as  our  holy 
rule  prescribes.  I  ask  you  to  pardon  all  my  faults 
against  charity  and  obedience.  And  because  I  know 
that  I  have  caused  you  some  inconvenience  and  annoy- 
ance by  reason  of  my  prolonged  infirmity,  and,  in  par- 
ticular, on  account  of  the  ugly  wound  that  I  have  borne 
so  long  on  my  forehead,  I  ask  you  most  humbly  to  have 
pity  on  my  frailty,  and  if  I  have  offended  in  an}i;hing, 
even  involuntarily,  pardon  my  ignorance,  and  pray  to 
God  for  me,  that  your  prayers  may  obtain  for  my  soul 
that  mercy  and  peace  I  hope  from  the  divine  clemency." 

The  nuns,  hearing  the  tender  words  of  St.  Rita, 
wept  bitterly  at  the  very  thought  of  losing  her  who  had 
so  often  consoled  them  by  her  very  presence,  and  edi- 
fied them  by  her  holy  example.  St.  Rita  observing  that 
the  nuns  were  filled  with  sadness,  consoled  them  by  say- 
ing: "Sisters,  I  am  not  afraid  to  die.  I  know  already 
what  it  is  to  die.  It  is  to  close  the  eyes  to  the  world  and 
open  them  to  God." 

St.  Rita  then  asked  to  receive  the  last  Sacraments, 
and  having  confessed,  the  while  shedding  abundant  tears, 
she  was  anointed  and  received  as  viaticum  the  Blessed 
Sacrament  of  the  Eucharist,  which  calmed,  at  once,  the 
tempest  of  pains  that  she  had  suffered  without  inter- 
mission, from  the  time  her  forehead  had  been  pierced  by 
the  sacred  thorn.  Being  consoled  by  the  sacred  iris  of 
the  divine  clemency,  St.  Rita  began  to  enjoy  a  total  rest 
from  the  antecedent  torments,  and  to  taste  of  the 
eternal  delights  in  the  contemplation  of  the  riches  and 
abundance  of  the  home  of  God.  St.  Rita  was  now 
knocking  at  the  gates  of  heaven,  asking  her  divine 
Spouse  to  open  them.  She  also  implored  the  help  of 
the  Queen  of  heaven,  the  ever  glorious  Blessed  Virgin 


130  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

Mary,  of  the  angels,  and  the  intercession  of  her  three 
powerful  protectors,  St.  John  the  Baptist,  St.  Augus- 
tine and  St.  Nicholas  of  Tolentine.  She  felt  sure  that 
these  three  saints  were  waiting  to  introduce  her  into  the 
palace  of  eternal  glory,  as  they  had  conducted  her  into 
the  haven  of  rehgion. 

Realizing  that  her  last  hour  had  come,  St.  Rita 
humbly  asked  the  blessing  of  her  superioress,  wishing  by 
this  last  act  of  submission  to  enhance  the  merits  of  her 
most  perfect  obedience.  And  because  she  had  always 
loved  her  sisters  in  religion  with  a  holy  love,  her  affec- 
tionate heart  prompted  these  parting  words:  "Love 
God  above  all  things.  His  goodness  being  infinite  and 
His  beauty  without  comparison,  you  should  keep  al- 
ways before  your  minds  the  great  love  He  has  for  you 
as  Father,  Spouse  and  Master.  Love  one  another  with 
a  reciprocal  chaste  and  holy  love.  Observe  faithfully 
the  rule  you  have  professed,  and  venerate  with  a  reli- 
gious affection  our  great  and  holy  father  St.  Augustine, 
who  has  pointed  out  to  you,  by  his  rule,  the  royal  road 
to  glory.  Be  obedient  to  Holy  Mother  Church,  and  to 
your  superioress,  as  you  promised  when  vou  made  your 
solemn  profession." 

Having  concluded  this  exhortation,  St.  Rita  blessed 
the  nuns  with  the  last  w^ords  she  was  heard  to  utter  on 
earth:  "May  God  bless  you  and  may  you  always  re- 
main in  holy  peace  and  love  with  your  beloved  Spouse 
Jesus  Christ."  Then,  fixing  her  eyes  on  the  crucifix, 
St.  Rita's  soul  took  flight  from  this  world  to  an  eternal 
rest  in  the  arms  of  her  divine  Bridegroom,  Jesus  Christ. 
At  the  very  moment  St.  Rita  expired,  one  of  the  nuns 
saw  her  soul  being  borne  to  heaven  by  angels. 

Sister  St.  Rita  died,  during  the  reign  of  Pope  Cal- 


St.  Ritas  Happy  Death  131 

listus  III.,  on  the  twenty-second  day  of  May,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord  1457.  She  had  reached  the  mature 
age  of  seventy-six  years,  of  which  forty-six  years  she 
had  been  an  Augustinian  nun. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

SiNGULAB  Events  that  Followed  Immediately  the 

Death  of  St.  Rita 

CARCELY  had  St.  Rita  left  this  world  to  enjoy 
the  eternal  happiness  of  heaven,  than  there  took 
place  events  that  prove  how  precious  her  death 
was  in  the  sight  of  God.  Immediately  after  she  ex- 
pired, her  cell  was  filled  and  aglow  with  a  supernatural 
light,  and  her  body  sent  forth  an  odor,  so  sweet  and  so 
fragrant,  as  if  it  were  a  mixture  of  roses,  white  lilies  and 
other  odoriferous  flowers.  The  odor  filled  the  entire 
convent  with  a  celestial  perfume,  which  doubly  compen- 
sated for  the  unbearable  odor  that  had  previously  come 
from  the  wound  which  disfigured  her  forehead.  The 
little  worms  which  had,  indeed,  helped  to  make  the 
countenance  of  St.  Rita  abominable  were  changed  into 
agreeable  and  pretty  lights  which  twinkled  like  little 
stars,  and  the  wound  caused  by  the  thorn  shone  with  the 
brilliancy  of  a  ruby.  Her  body  had  not  the  sign  of  a 
corpse;  that  body,  which  before  death  was  almost  a 
skeleton,  on  account  of  her  continual  penances  and  the 
four  years  of  illness  she  suffered,  became  pliant  and 
soft  and  fresh,  so  that  she  did  not  appear  to  be  the  prey 
of  death,  but  only  sleeping  peacefully.  She  appeared 
years  young  than  she  was,  and  her  face  was  more  beauti- 
ful in  death  than  in  life. 

132 


Singular  Events  Follow  Death  of  St,  Rita    133 

As  if  to  celebrate  the  entrance  of  St.  Rita  into  the 
kingdom  and  home  of  her  divine  Spouse,  angels  moved 
the  inanimate  tongues  of  the  bells  in  the  belfries  of  the 
holy  places  in  Cascia.  At  the  very  moment  of  her 
death,  the  large  bell  of  the  Maddalena  Convent  began 
to  ring  out  its  joyous  peals,  and  when  it  had  ceased,  the 
bell  of  the  church  of  St.  Mary,  as  well  as  that  of  St. 
Lucy's  Convent,  were  also  rung  by  angels,  according  to 
the  testimony  of  Father  Donato  Donati  of  Lucca.  The 
pealing  of  the  bells  brought  a  large  concourse  of  people 
to  the  church  of  the  Maddalena,  and  when  it  was  told 
them,  by  the  chaplain  of  the  convent,  that  the  bells 
announced  both  the  entrance  of  St.  Rita  into  heaven, 
and  her  departure  from  this  world,  the  people  were 
silent  for  a  few  moments,  then  their  eyes  welled  with 
tears  and  they  wept  bitterly.  They  knew  and  felt  that 
they  had  lost  a  mother,  and  a  protector  in  their  labors 
and  afflictions.  But  bethinking  themselves,  they  were 
consoled  with  the  thought,  that  St.  Rita  would  still  con- 
tinue to  be  their  patroness  and  protectress,  if,  by  their 
holy  and  Christian  lives,  they  would  merit  to  retain  her 
patronage. 

After  the  nuns  had  prepared  the  body  of  St.  Rita 
for  burial,  her  funeral  shroud  being  the  same  habit  and 
headdress  she  had  worn  from  her  entrance  into  the  con- 
vent, the  body  was  borne  to  the  church  and  placed  on  a 
catafalque  before  the  main  altar.  The  church  was 
thronged  with  people,  for  besides  the  faithful  of  Cascia 
very  many  came  from  the  neighboring  towns  and  vil- 
lages. Each  one  in  the  church  seemed  to  wish  to  be 
first  to  venerate  the  body  of  the  saint,  and  all  were 
astonished  and  admired  the  celestial  odor  her  body 
emitted,  and  the  heavenly  lights  her  countenance  ra- 
diated, those  of  the  wound  on  her  forehead  being  the 


134  Life  of  Sister  St,  Bit  a  of  Cascia 

most  noticeable,  as  they  shone  and  glistened  with  all 
the  brilliancy  of  the  most  precious  stones. 

Of  the  very  many  who  were  in  the  church,  a  goodly 
number  had  the  happiness  to  kiss  or  touch  the  body  of 
the  saint,  and  not  a  few  were  recipients  of  singular 
favors  by  reason  of  this  contact.  We  will  mention  one 
remarkable  case.  A  relative  of  St.  Rita  had  suffered 
severe  pains  in  one  of  her  arms  for  many  years.  Medi- 
cal science  had  failed  to  give  her  any  relief  and  the  arm 
had  become  paralyzed  and  utterly  useless.  With  an  ar- 
dent faith  and  confidence  in  the  intercessory  power  of 
St.  Rita,  the  afflicted  woman  approached  and  touched 
the  dead  body  of  the  saint  with  the  paralyzed  arm,  and 
the  arm  was  instantly  cured  of  its  paralysis,  to  the  great 
surprise  of  the  very  many  persons  who  were  witnesses 
of  the  miracle.  Naturally  the  people  broke  forth  into 
accents  of  joy  and  gladness,  and  with  loud  voices  praised 
God  and  thanked  Him,  for  having  given  them  so  signal 
a  proof  of  the  sanctity  of  His  holy  servant,  and  their 
hearts  were  filled  with  veneration  for  the  body  of  St. 
Rita,  which  had  now  become  a  most  precious  relic. 

Had  it  been  left  to  the  nuns  of  the  Maddalena,  they 
would  have  had  the  funeral  services  over  the  body  of 
St.  Rita  without  any  pomp  or  solemnity.  But  the  peo- 
ple of  Cascia  wished  otherwise.  Though  they  knew 
that  the  pure  and  innocent  soul  of  St.  Rita  did  not  stand 
in  need  of  prayers,  because  she  had  no  sins  to  atone  for, 
and  died  the  death  of  the  just,  nevertheless,  because  they 
had  lost  a  mother,  a  guide  and  exemplar,  they  deter- 
mined that  St.  Rita's  funeral  should  be  conducted  with 
all  the  pomp  and  ceremony  of  the  ritual  of  Holy  Mother 
Church.  The  generosity  of  the  people  of  Cascia  de- 
frayed the  funeral  expenses,  and  never  before  or  since 
has    Cascia   witnessed   so   large    a  number   of   people 


Singular  Events  Follow  Death  of  St.  Rita      135 

assembled  together  to  pay  their  last  respects  to  a  de- 
parted soul.  So  great  was  the  tlirong  of  people  that 
wished  to  view  the  remains  of  St.  Rita  that  the  body- 
was  left  in  the  church  for  three  days.  During  these 
three  days  many  miracles  were  wrought  through  the 
intercession  of  St.  Rita.  Many  were  bf  the  opinion, 
that  the  body  should  not  be  interred,  since  it  bore  no 
sign  of  death,  but  finally  all  agreed  that  the  body  of 
St.  Rita  should  repose  in  some  place  where  it  could  al- 
ways be  seen  by  those  who  wished  to  venerate  it. 

The  nuns  of  the  Maddalena,  fearing  to  lose  so 
precious  a  treasure,  determined  to  have  the  body  of  the 
saint  within  the  cloister.  At  that  time,  perhaps  by 
divine  disposition,  there  was  but  one  carpenter  in  Cascia, 
whose  name  was  Fif^ncis  Barbari.  Two  of  the  nuns 
went  to  his  house  for  the  purpose  of  asking  him  to  make 
a  coffin  for  St.  Rita's  body.  On  their  arrival  at  his 
residence,  they  found  him  propped  up  in  a  chair,  so  sick 
and  feeble  that  he  could  not  move  a  hand  or  foot. 
Learning  the  nuns'  mission,  a  ray  of  hope  penetrated 
the  heart  of  Francis,  and  he  told  the  nuns  he  would 
make  the  coffin,  provided  he  were  restored  to  health 
through  the  intercession  of  the  saint.  As  it  appears 
from  the  Process  of  St.  Rita's  Beatification,  Francis 
Barbari  was  immediately  cured  through  the  interces- 
sion of  the  saint,  and  he  had  the  honor  of  making  the 
coffin  which  still  contains  the  body  of  that  holy  Augus- 
tinian  nun,  who  is  the  glory  and  honor  of  Cascia,  and 
one  of  the  most  illustrious  saints  of  the  Catholic  Church. 

When  the  body  of  the  saint  was  placed  in  the  coffin, 
the  coffin  was  brought  from  the  church  and  deposited  in 
the  centre  of  the  oratory,  where,  as  you  have  been  told, 
St.  Rita  received  the  wound  on  the  forehead,  while  pray- 
ing before  the  crucifix.     An  altar,  the  first  monument 


136  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

to  St.  Rita,  was  built  over  the  body  of  the  saint. 
Around  the  altar  is  a  low  railing.  The  oratory  is  sep- 
arate from  both  cloister  and  church,  guarded  by  high 
gratings  of  iron,  so  that  the  nuns  from  the  cloister,  as 
well  as  the  people  in  the  church,  may  always  see  the 
face  of  St.  Rita,  through  whose  intercession  God  is  daily 
bestowing  graces  and  blessings  on  the  faithful,  especially 
on  the  devout  clients  of  Sister  St.  Rita, 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

The  Worship  With  Which  St.  Rita  Was 

Venerated 

•fl  EVOTION  to  St.  Rita  began  immediately  after 
^  J  her  death.  Every  day,  from  early  morn  until  sun- 
^^  set,  the  church  of  the  Maddalena  was  crowded  with 
devout  worshipers,  who  vied  with  one  another,  in  vener- 
ating her  body,  as  if  she  had  been  already  declared  a 
saint  by  the  Church.  Not  only  did  the  inhabitants  of 
Cascia  venerate  the  holy  remains  of  St.  Rita,  but  even 
the  people  of  the  neighborhood  came  every  year,  in  pro- 
cessions, on  the  anniversary  of  her  death,  to  venerate 
St.  Rita's  body,  and  to  give  it  the  honor  and  homage 
due  only  to  the  body  of  a  saint.  Even  before  the  Beati- 
fication of  St.  Rita,  the  nuns  of  the  Maddalena  recited 
an  office  of  St.  Rita  on  the  anniversary  of  her  death, 
and  the  convent  and  the  church,  both  dedicated  to  St. 
Mary  Magdalen,  became  known  as  the  church  and  con- 
vent of  St.  Rita. 

So  great  was  the  love  and  veneration  of  the  people 
of  Cascia  for  St.  Rita,  that  to  preserve  her  memory, 
they  had  a  magnificent  picture  painted,  by  a  celebrated 
artist,  for  the  church.  In  this  beautiful  picture  are  rep- 
resented some  of  the  principal  incidents  of  the  life  of 
St.  Rita.  The  house,  at  Rocca  Porrena,  in  which  St. 
Rita  was  born  and  lived  before  she  entered  the  con- 

137 


138  Life  of  Sister  St,  Eita  of  Cascia 

vent,  became  the  object  of  much  veneration,  and  not 
many  years  after  the  death  of  the  saint  it  became  a 
church.  But  though  Cascia  has  the  great  fortune  of 
possessing  the  body  of  the  saint,  it  is  the  greatest  boast, 
even  to  the  present  day,  of  the  people  of  the  little  vil- 
lage of  Rocca  Porrena,  that  it  has  the  incomparable 
honor  of  being  the  birthplace  of  the  great  and  glori- 
ous St.  Rita.  And  finally,  the  cell  the  saint  occupied 
in  the  convent  became,  in  the  eyes  of  the  nuns,  a  sacred 
and  holy  place,  where  they  often  entered  to  pray,  and 
to  ask  the  aid  and  intercession  of  thir  dear  departed 
sister,  whom  they  believed  was  reigning  in  heaven  with 
her  divine  Spouse,  Jesus  Christ. 

As  day  followed  day,  the  devotion  to  St.  Rita  in- 
creased, and  the  miracles  wrought  through  her  power- 
ful intercession  were  multiplied.  Cascia  became  the 
Mecca,  so  to  speak,  of  pilgrims  from  the  provinces  far 
beyond  the  limits  of  Umbria.  The  name  and  fame  of 
St.  Rita  spread  over  all  Italy,  so  that  the  afflicted  of 
every  class  and  condition  of  life  turned  their  steps, 
or  were  brought  to  Cascia.  ISTo  one  can  number  the 
miracles  wrought  in  the  church  of  St.  Rita,  during  the 
half  century  of  years  that  followed  the  death  of  the 
saint.  Every  one  of  these  fifty  years  brought  numbers 
of  persons  afflicted  with  all  kinds  of  maladies  to  St. 
Rita's  church  in  Cascia,  seeking  help  and  aid  from 
her  who  seemed  to  be  able  to  obtain  from  God  whatever 
she  asked.  Judging  from  the  many  votive  offerings  pre- 
sented to  the  church  by  those  whose  prayers  were  heard 
and  whose  petitions  were  granted,  we  may  conclude  that 
many  thousands  of  the  afflicted  were  consoled,  healed, 
or  made  happy  through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita. 

Devotion  to  St.  Rita  had  a  very  salutary  effect  on 
the  moral  atmosphere  of  Cascia.       Its  people  became 


St  Rita  Venerated  With  Worship  139 

God-loving  and  devout  Christians.  And  so  great  was 
the  love  and  veneration  of  the  people  of  Caseia  for 
the  saint,  that  they  determined  to  change  the  ancient 
coat  of  arms,  and  adopt  in  its  place  a  figure  of  St.  Rita, 
holding  in  one  hand  a  crucifix,  and  in  the  other  a  rose, 
while  her  head  is  crowned  with  a  halo  of  brilliant  lights. 
This  coat  of  arms  was  painted  on  one  of  the  walls  of 
the  Council  Chamber  of  the  City  Hall  of  Caseia. 

That  the  faithful  of  Caseia  enjoyed,  at  least,  the 
tacit  approbation  of  the  Holy  See,  to  have  public  wor- 
ship in  honor  of  St.  Rita,  even  before  her  solemn  Beati- 
fication, may  be  inferred  from  a  letter  written  by  Cardi- 
nal Borghese,  nephew  of  Pope  Paul  V,  in  response  to 
a  letter  from  the  Mayor  of  Caseia,  who  sought  permis- 
sion, from  the  authorities  at  Rome,  to  have  a  large  ban- 
ner made  to  be  carried  in  the  procession  held  each  year 
in  honor  of  St.  Rita.  The  tenor  of  the  letter  is  as  fol- 
lows : 

My  Very  Dear  Sir: 

The  Sacred  Congregation  grants  permission  to  the 
Community  of  Caseia,  to  expend  the  sum  of  one  hund- 
red and  fifty  dollars  for  the  purchase  of  a  banner,  to  be 
carried  in  the  procession  held  each  year  in  honor  of 
holy  Rita. 

Yours  sincerely. 

Cardinal  Borghese. 

The  banner  was  accordingly  procured.  On  it  was 
painted  a  picture  of  St.  Rita  and  the  Arms  of  Paul  V. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

The  Privileges  that  the  Body  and  Relics  of  St. 

Rita  Enjoy 

^JTHE  FIRST  and  principal  privilege,  that  God  has 
4|L  deigned  to  grant  to  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  is  that  it 
^^  has  never  suffered  the  law  of  dissolution.  It  is 
really  wonderful  to  relate,  that  though  hundreds  of 
years  have  elapsed  since  St.  Rita  died,  her  body  is  so 
well  preserved,  that  there  is  not  visible  the  least  trace  of 
corruption.  In  fact,  St.  Rita  does  not  appear  to  be 
dead,  she  has  rather  the  appearance  of  a  person  who  is 
sleeping  soundly.  Her  flesh  is  milk-white;  her  mouth 
is  slightly  parted,  so  that  one  may  see  her  white  teeth. 
Her  eyes  are  half -opened,  though  they  had  remained 
closed  from  the  time  of  her  death  until  the  day  of  her 
solemn  Beatification,  of  which  we  shall  speak  in  a  future 
chapter. 

The  second  prodigy  is  that  the  habit  and  veil  which 
St.  Rita  wore  from  the  time  she  entered  the  convent 
until  she  died  and  which  served  for  her  funeral  shroud, 
are  stiU  intact  and  in  good  condition.  Not  less  mar- 
velous is  the  miraculous  virtue  of  her  clothing  and  veil. 
From  time  to  time  the  nuns  are  accustomed  to  place 
pieces  of  linen  or  woolen  cloth  on  the  body  of  St.  Rita. 
They  then  cut  the  cloth  into  very  small  pieces,  and  dis- 
tribute them  among  the  faithful.     Many  singular  re- 

140 


Privileges  Relics  of  St  Rita  Enjoy  141 

suits  have  been  effected  by  means  of  these  little  pieces 
of  cloth  that  have  touched  the  clothing  of  St.  Rita.  In 
proof  of  what  we  say  we  will  mention  a  few  miraculous 
results. 

On  the  10th  of  May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1525, 
a  little  boy,  son  of  Giovanni  Francisco  di  Nardo,  a 
native  of  San  Bruto,  was  suddenly  seized  with  an  attack 
of  apoplexy.  For  three  days  the  child  was  unable  to 
take  food,  or  open  his  eyes,  or  speak.  Full  of  faith  and 
confidence  in  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita,  the  poor  father 
set  out  for  Cascia,  and  having  visited  the  tomb  of  the 
saint,  he  obtainted  a  small  piece  of  her  tunic.  On  re- 
turning home,  he  applied  the  piece  of  cloth  he  had 
received  from  the  nuns  to  his  son's  eyes.  The  little  boy 
opened  his  eyes  at  once,  he  began  to  talk  and  was  en- 
tirely cured  of  the  apoplexy. 

On  the  27th  of  April,  in  the  year  1652,  a  house,  be- 
longing to  Signora  Clara  Calderini,  wife  of  Giovanni 
Polidoro,  a  resident  of  Narni,  took  fire  accidentally. 
Owing  to  the  scarcity  of  water,  all  hope  of  saving  the 
building  was  abandoned.  The  fire,  however,  was  ex- 
tinguished almost  immediately,  by  throwing  into  the 
flames  a  small  piece  of  woolen  cloth  which  had  touched 
the  veil  of  St.  Rita.  This  fact  is  attested  by  the  officials 
of  the  city  of  Narni,  May  21st  of  the  same  year. 

The  third  prodigy  is  the  sweet  odor  and  fragrance 
that  emanate  constantly  from  the  body  of  St.  Rita. 
This  sweet  odor  is  at  times  more  noticeable  than  at  oth- 
ers. Sometimes  it  perfumes  the  atmosphere  beyond  the 
limits  of  the  church,  especially  when  any  signal  favor 
is  obtained  from  God  through  the  intercession  of  St. 
Rita.  On  these  occasions  the  nuns  ring  the  large  con- 
vent bell  in  thanksgiving  to  God  for  sliowing  Himself 
so  wonderful  in  His  humble  servant  St.  Rita.     On  one 


142  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

particular  occasion,  the  sweet  odor  and  heavenly  fra- 
grance coming  from  the  body  was  so  very  noticeable  that 
the  nuns  were  most  anxious  to  know  the  cause.  A  few 
days  later  they  learned  the  reason.  A  lady,  the  wife  of 
an  eminent  physician  of  Sinigaglia,  came  to  the  convent 
and  informed  the  nuns,  that  her  son,  whose  life  had  been 
despaired  of  by  her  husband  and  other  physicians,  had 
been  cured  through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita.  In 
thanksgiving  for  this  great  favor,  the  overjoyed  mother 
had  brought  a  large  silver  votive  offering,  to  be  placed 
on  the  tomb  of  the  saint. 

The  fourth  prodigy  is  that  the  body  of  St.  Rita  ap- 
pears to  be  living,  from  the  frequency  of  elevating  it- 
self, so  that  it  touches  the  network  of  wires  that  covers 
the  cofiin.  This  prodigy  is  especially  noticeable  on  the 
feast  day  of  the  saint.  May  22nd,  and  when  the  bishop 
of  Spoleto,  or  the  provincial  of  Umbria,  makes  his  visits 
to  Cascia  to  venerate  the  saint's  body.  It  would  seem 
that  St.  Rita,  the  model  of  obedience  to  her  superiors 
while  living,  wishes  even  after  death  to  practice  the  vir- 
tue of  obedience. 

The  fifth  prodigy  is  recognized  in  the  virtue  of  the 
little  breads,  with  the  figure  of  St.  Rita  stamped  upon 
them,  that  the  nuns  distribute,  on  her  feast  day,  or  dur- 
ing the  year  to  the  pilgrims  who  come  to  visit  the  tomb 
of  the  saint  to  venerate  her  body.  These  little  breads 
are  carefully  made  by  the  nuns  and  when  made  are  cov- 
ered with  cloths  that  have  touched  the  body  of  St.  Rita. 
By  the  eating  of  one  of  these  little  breads,  many  per- 
sons, grievously  ill  with  fever  and  other  maladies,  have 
been  cured.  And  many  rain  and  hail  storms,  and  even 
storms  at  sea,  have  suddenly  ceased  by  exposing  to  the 
air  one  of  these  little  breads,  accompanied  by  the  reci- 
tation of  an  "Our  Father"  and  a  "Hail  Mary." 


Privileges  Relics  of  St.  Rita  Enjoy  143 

The  sixth  prodigy  is  manifested  in  the  wonderful 
heahng  power  of  the  oil  of  the  lamp  that  is  kept  con- 
stantly lighted  before  the  tomb  of  St.  Rita.  Many  re- 
markable cures  have  been  effected  in  favor  of  those,  who, 
having  faith  and  confidence  in  the  intercession  of  St. 
Rita,  anointed  the  afflicted  parts  of  their  bodies  with  a 
few  drops  of  this  oil. 

In  the  year  1620,  a  very  good  and  devout  woman, 
named  Coluccia,  the  wife  of  Giovanni  Andreas,  a  native 
of  Norcia,  came  to  Cascia  accompanied  by  her  young 
son  who  was  deprived  of  the  use  of  his  hands  and  feet 
by  reason  of  paralysis.  When  Coluccia  had  come  with 
her  crippled  son  before  the  tomb  of  St.  Rita,  she  ob- 
tained a  small  portion  of  the  oil,  and  after  she  anointed 
his  helpless  hands  and  feet,  she  had  the  extreme  joy  and 
happiness  of  seeing  her  son  cured  instantly.  Ever 
afterwards  the  young  boy  was  accustomed  to  sa}'':  "I 
am  a  child  of  St.  Rita  of  Cascia." 

A  like  favor  was  obtained  by  Alessandro  Alessan- 
drini,  a  native  of  Amatrice,  of  the  province  of  Abruzzi, 
not  far  from  the  confines  of  Cascia.  He  was  at  the 
very  door  of  death,  by  reason  of  a  deep  wound  he  had 
received  in  the  thigh.  The  wound  was  healed  by  one 
application  of  the  oil,  without  leaving  the  least  sign 
of  a  scar. 

No  less  f 01  lunate  was  the  lot  of  Granicia,  the  daugh- 
ter of  Antonio  Vanatteli,  a  native  of  Atri,  a  village  of 
Cascia.  This  young  girl  suffered  acute  pains,  caused 
by  a  tumor  in  her  right  side.  She  had  recourse  to  the 
aid  of  St.  Rita,  and  by  applying  the  oil  to  her  side,  the 
pains  ceased,  and  the  tumor  disappeared. 

In  tlie  year  1616,  Pompeo  Benenato,  a  native  of  Cas- 
cia, and  governor  that  year  of  Ferrara,  bled  from  the 
nose  so  copiously,  that  he  became  very  weak  from  the 


144  LAfe  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

loss  of  blood.  Do  wh;;L  Lhey  would  the  efforts  of  phy- 
sicians could  not  stay  the  flow  of  blood.  Being  a  man 
of  faith,  the  governor  made  a  novena  to  St.  Rita.  On 
the  last  day  of  the  novena,  the  blood  flowed  more  copious 
than  ever,  but  on  anointing  the  extremity  of  the  nose  and 
nostrils  with  the  oil,  and  by  making  the  sign  of  the 
cross,  invoking  at  the  same  time  the  aid  of  St.  Rita,  the 
flow  of  blood  stopped  suddenly.  In  thanksgiving  for 
this  great  favor,  the  governor  presented  a  beautiful  and 
costly  lamp  to  the  shrine  of  St.  Rita. 

But  among  the  many  prodigies,  by  which  God  has 
made  manifest  the  sanctity  of  His  holy  servant  St.  Rita, 
there  is  none  more  worthy  of  our  admiration  than  the 
little  swarm  of  bees,  commonly  called  "St.  Rita's  Bees." 
We  have  already  seen  that  a  swarm  of  white  bees  ap- 
peared and  hovered  around  the  cradle  of  the  saint,  but 
the  bees  of  which  we  now  speak  are  those  which  first  ap- 
peared when  the  saint  entered  the  convent,  where  they 
now  live  in  a  retired  place  in  the  convent  wall.  They 
leave  the  convent  every  Holy  Week  and  remain  abroad 
until  the  feast  of  St.  Rita.  Oftentimes,  during  the 
year,  they  fly  through  the  convent  and  in  the  garden, 
but  it  is  very  noticeable,  that  they  first  fly  to  the  room 
of  the  prioress,  as  if  to  ask  permission  to  take  their 
recreation.  Another  noticeable  fact  about  them  is  this ; 
they  are  the  constant  companions  of  the  nuns  while  they 
are  kneading  the  dough  to  make  the  little  breads  of  St. 
Rita,  and  it  would  seem  as  if  the  little  winged-creatures 
were  urging  on  the  work  of  the  nuns  by  their  con- 
tinual humming  and  buzzing. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

MiRACi^s  That  God  Wrought  Through  the  Inter- 
cession OF  St.  Rita  After  Her  Death 

^JN  EVERY  age,  there  have  been  holy  and  saintly 
11  persons  who  have  verified  the  saying  of  the  Holy 
*^  Ghost:  "God  is  wonderful  in  His  saints."  The 
pages  of  church  history  are  replete  vdth  names  of  saints 
whom  God  has  honored  by  making  them  the  instru- 
ments of  His  power,  and  by  communicating  to  them  the 
gift  of  working  miracles  in  His  name  and  for  His  honor 
and  glory. 

Among  the  many  and  the  great  saints  to  whom  God 
has  given  the  power  of  miracles,  there  is  none  more 
favored  with  this  heavenly  gift  than  the  humble  Agus- 
tinian  nun.  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia.  In  fact,  so  mar- 
velous have  been  the  miracles  wrought  through  her 
powerful  intercession,  that  she  has  merited  the  singular 
and  glorious  title:     "Saint  of  the  Impossible." 

Were  we  to  relate  the  long  list  of  miracles  wrought 
through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita,  we  would  be 
obliged  to  make  the  story  of  her  life  too  long.  We  will 
only  mention  a  few  of  the  many  miracles  brought  to 
notice  during  the  Process  of  her  Beatification. 

That  God  gave  St.  Rita  power  and  dominion  over 
the  common  enemy  of  mankind,  is  evident  from  the 
number  of  persons  she  liberated  from  the  tyranny  and 

145 


146  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

slavery  of  the  Evil  One  who  afflicted  their  bodies  in 
various  and  violent  ways. 

We  will  relate  two  striking  facts  in  proof  of  St. 
Rita's  power  over  the  Evil  One.  Perna,  the  daughter 
of  Giovanni  and  Elena  Tuzi,  both  natives  of  Norcia, 
had  been,  for  many  years,  tormented  by  an  evil  spirit 
that  had  taken  possession  of  her  body.  On  the  10th  of 
June,  in  the  year  1491,  Perna  came  to  Cascia,  and  while 
kneeling  in  prayer  before  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  the  evil 
spirit  was  forced  to  leave  and  go  out  of  her  body. 

Another  woman,  whose  name  was  Casandra,  a  resi- 
dent of  Aquilla,  became  possessed  of  a  devil,  God  per- 
mitting it,  in  punishment  for  breaking  her  promise  to 
go  and  venerate  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  through  whose 
intercession  her  sick  boy  had  been  cured  when  he  was 
at  the  point  of  death.  For  the  space  of  three  years  the 
devil  tormented  her  in  a  most  cruel  manner.  One  day 
the  evil  spirit  told  her  that  he  would  never  abandon, 
nor  cease  to  torment  her,  unless  she  went  to  visit  the 
tomb  of  St.  Rita  in  Cascia.  By  force,  two  of  her 
grownup  sons  brought  her  before  the  body  of  St.  Rita, 
and  Casandra  was  liberated,  at  once,  from  the  power 
of  the  devil,  who,  on  leaving  the  woman's  body,  pro- 
claimed the  details  of  the  miracle.  This  miracle  took 
pleace  in  the  year  1541. 

St.  Rita's  power  in  curing  the  blind  was  no  less  mar- 
vellous. A  woman,  whose  name  was  Lucia  di  Santi,  a 
native  of  the  village  of  Santa  Maria,  had  been  deprived 
of  her  sight  for  the  period  of  fifteen  years.  On  the  18th 
of  June,  in  the  year  1457,  her  blindness  was  cured,  after 
she  had  prayed  for  fifteen  consecutive  days  before  the 
body  of  St.  Rita. 

Another  woman,  blind  of  an  eye,  recovered  her  full 


1 


Miracles  Through  Intercession  of  St,  Rita      147 

sight  through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita,  in  the  year 
1539. 

A  similar  favor  was  obtained  by  Bernardino,  son  of 
Tiberio,  who  accidentally  injured  one  of  his  eyes.  Ac- 
cording to  reputable  physicians,  he  was  in  danger  of 
losing  the  sight  of  his  other  eye.  But  when  he  was  led 
before  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  he  humbly  asked  her  aid 
and  his  eye  was  healed. 

St.  Rita  also  extended  her  patronage  to  the  deaf  and 
mute.  In  the  month  of  May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord 
1457,  Francesca,  the  daughter  of  Antonio,  a  citizen  of 
Fucella,  who  had  been  deaf  in  one  ear,  for  five  years, 
was  instantly  cured  by  invoking  St.  Rita. 

In  the  same  month  of  the  same  year,  Francesca, 
daughter  of  Giovanni  di  Chiodo,  a  native  of  Viseli,  a 
little  village  of  Norcia,  who  had  been  mute  from  her 
birth,  received  the  power  of  speech  while  praying  be- 
fore the  body  of  St.  Rita,  and  caused  great  surprise 
and  admiration  to  those  kneeling  around  her,  by  recit- 
ing, in  a  loud  voice,  the  "Hail  Mary."  The  words  of 
the  "Hail  Mary"  were  the  first  Francesca  had  ever 
articulated. 

On  the  13th  of  July,  in  the  year  1457,  Francesco,  the 
son  of  Antonio  Pasquale  who  lived  in  the  village  of  San 
Cipriano,  in  Amatrice,  who  was  mute  from  his  birth,  be- 
gan to  speak  after  praying  the  greater  part  of  two  days 
before  the  tomb  of  St.  Rita. 

Mattea  di  Cesare,  a  native  of  Rocca  Indulsi,  a  vil- 
lage of  Norcia,  who  had  been  born  deaf  and  dumb,  was 
cured  of  both  her  affliction  while  praying  before  the 
body  of  St.  Rita. 

And  in  the  year  1558,  Porcia,  the  daugliter  of  Gero- 
lamo  di  Angelo,  who  had  been  born  mute,  received  the 
power  of  speech,  through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita. 


148  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

St.  Rita  is  also  a  special  advocate  before  God  for 
those  who  suffer  infirmities  of  the  throat,  as  is  verified 
by  the  following.  A  certain  Francesco  di  Monteferro 
was  afflicted  with  a  cancer  in  the  throat.  As  he  was  a 
good  and  devout  man,  St.  Rita  appeared  to  him  in  his 
sleep.  While  in  doubt  whether  the  vision  were  an 
illusion  or  not,  St.  Rita  appeared  a  second  time.  Fran- 
cesco told  some  of  his  friends  of  these  visions,  and  asked 
them  if  there  were  any  saint  with  a  wound  on  her  fore- 
head. But  his  friends  only  laughed  and  began  to  make 
fun  of  him.  St.  Rita  appeared  a  third  time  to  him  and 
told  him  her  name.  Feeling  consoled  after  this  last 
vision,  Francesco  went  to  Cascia  and  was  completely 
cured  of  the  cancer  while  he  was  in  prayer  before  the 
tomb  of  the  saint.  This  miracle  took  place  in  the  year 
1510.  In  thanksgiving  to  God,  for  so  great  a  manifes- 
tation of  His  mercy  and  power  through  the  intercession 
of  St.  Rita,  the  people,  who  were  in  the  church  when  the 
miracle  was  wrought,  formed  a  procession,  and  marched 
through  the  streets  of  Cascia.  After  the  procession,  a 
sermon  was  preached  in  honor  of  St.  Rita. 

A  like  favor  was  granted  Maestro  Francesco  of 
Milano,  who  also  suffered  from  a  cancer  in  the  throat. 
St.  Rita  appeared  to  him  three  times  and  told  him  to 
go  to  Cascia  to  venerate  her  body,  which  he  did,  and 
was  cured  in  the  year  1500. 

Giovanna,  a  native  of  Fogliano,  suffered  from  a 
malady  of  the  throat.  She  could  neither  eat  nor  drink 
and  could  scarcely  breathe.  The  physician  who  at- 
tended her  could  do  nothing  to  relieve  her.  Oftentimes, 
after  being  seized  with  a  violent  convulsion  she  would 
fall  into  a  swoon,  and  appear  as  if  she  were  dead.  On 
one  occasion,  after  coming  out  of  a  swoon  caused  by  a 
violent  spasm,  she   said  she  had   seen  St.   Rita,  who 


Miracles  Through  Intercession  of  St,  Rita      149 

touched  her  throat  with  her  hand  and  said:  "Be  not 
afraid.  Arise  and  spit."  Having  done  as  the  saint 
commanded,  Giovanna  was  cured  of  her  malady,  the 
22nd  of  May,  1481. 

St.  Rita  was  also  compassionate  towards  the 
paralytics  who  sought  her  intercession.  Among  the 
many  paralytics  she  cured  was  a  certain  woman  of 
Longe.  She  had  been  a  paralytic  for  years.  Having 
been  brought  by  some  of  her  family  to  Cascia,  they 
placed  her  before  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  and  while  pray- 
ing with  faith  and  confidence  in  the  intercession  of  St. 
Rita,  she  w^as  cured.  After  returning  thanks  to  God 
and  St.  Rita,  she  returned  home  on  foot.  This  miracle 
took  place  in  the  year  1489. 

God  also  endowed  St.  Rita  with  the  power  to  give  ' 
health  to  as  many  of  the  sick  or  infirm,  who  with  faith 
and  confidence  implored  her  intercession.  Lucrezia, 
daughter  of  Notario  Paulo,  a  native  of  Calforcella,  was 
a  victim,  for  many  years,  of  dropsy.  On  the  25th  of 
May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1547,  while  standing  in 
the  presence  of  the  body  of  St.  Rita,  she  was  cured  of 
her  ailment. 

Venucio  di  Santi,  a  native  of  Fogliano,  had  broken 
his  arm.  He  promised  St.  Rita  he  would  make  an 
offering  to  her  shrine  in  Cascia  if  she  would  heal  him. 
His  arm  was  instantly  healed.  Delaying  the  fulfill- 
ment of  his  promise,  he  soon  forgot  it.  One  day,  while 
on  his  way  to  Norcia  where  he  had  some  business,  a  vio- 
lent pain  attacked  one  of  his  feet,  and  it  was  with  great 
difficulty  that  he  could  limp  along.  Recognizing  that 
God  had  punished  him,  for  not  complying  with  the 
promise  he  had  made  to  St.  Rita,  with  tears  in  his  eyes, 
he  promised  a  dou})le  offering  to  the  saint  if  she  would 
again  cure  him,  and  the  pain  left  his  foot  at  once. 


150  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

In  the  year  1539,  a  son  of  Loreto  di  Pietrojaco  was 
cured  of  the  falhng  sickness,  by  invoking  the  interces- 
sion of  St.  Rita. 

Ristoro  Garrio,  a  resident  of  Amatrice,  was  seized 
with  acute  spasmodic  pains  in  the  abdomen.  He  was 
actually  at  the  point  of  death,  when,  by  the  advice  of  his 
wife,  he  promised  to  go  to  Cascia  to  visit  the  tomb  of 
St.  Rita,  and  he  was  instantly  cured. 

Giovanni  Andreas,  a  little  boy  of  four  years,  the 
son  of  Fabriano  Fortunato,  happened  to  fall  into  a 
large  tub  of  boiling  water.  He  was  injured  so  much 
that  he  could  neither  see  nor  speak.  His  poor  mother 
recommended  her  little  son  to  St.  Rita,  and  in  a  few 
days  he  recovered  his  sight  and  speech. 

Cesare,  son  of  Giovanni  Francesco  Nardo,  a  native 
of  Cascia,  met  with  a  grave  accident.  For  three  days, 
he  could  neither  eat  nor  drink.  His  parents  brought 
him  to  the  tomb  of  St.  Rita,  and  after  they  and  he  had 
prayed  for  a  short  time,  he  was  completely  cured. 

On  the  9th  of  December,  in  the  year  1494,  Andrea, 
son  of  Giovanni  Nucio,  a  native  of  Atri,  while  felling 
trees,  had  the  misfortune  to  be  struck  by  a  falling  oak 
tree  which  pinned  him  to  the  ground.  Seeing  that  he 
would  be  crushed  to  death,  if  somebodv  did  not  come  to 
his  assistance,  he  invoked  the  aid  of  St.  Rita,  from  whom 
he  had  received  a  favor.  Wonderful  to  relate,  the 
tree  parted,  and  Andrea  escaped  without  the  least  in- 
jury. 

St.  Rita  also  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  saving  those 
whose  lives  were  in  danger  of  drowning.  On  the  1st  of 
May,  in  the  year  1539,  Antonia,  the  daughter  of  Gio- 
vanni Silvestro,  a  native  of  Rocca  Porrena,  fell  from  a 
bridge  into  a  river.  The  current  was  so  swift,  that,  in 
a  short  time,  she  was  carried  a  little  more  than  a  mile. 


Miracles  Through  Intercession  of  St,  Ilita      151 

from  where  she  fell  into  the  water.  The  many  persons, 
who  sought  her  body,  believing  she  was  drowned,  found 
her  sitting  on  the  bank  of  the  river  safe  and  uninjured. 
She  told  them  she  had  been  saved  from  drowning  by 
St.  Rita,  whom  she  had  invoked  when  she  fell  into  the 
river. 

In  the  year  1530,  Bartolomeo,  the  son  Giacomo, 
a  native  of  Colforcella,  who  fell  into  a  well,  was  saved 
through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita. 

And  in  the  year  1539,  St.  Rita  also  saved  the  life  of 
a  little  boy  who  had  fallen  into  a  deep  well,  where  he 
remained  three  hours  before  he  was  discovered. 

St.  Rita  is  also  powerful  against  the  ravages  of 
earthquakes.  In  the  year  1730,  the  city  of  Cascia  was 
in  a  state  of  great  anxiety  and  dismay.  Hundreds  of 
people  from  the  outlying  towns  and  villages  came  hur- 
rying into  the  city  to  take  refuge  in  the  church  of  St. 
Rita,  frightened  by  an  earthquake,  which  in  a  few 
moments  of  time,  had  destroyed  many  houses.  At  the 
very  first  trembling  of  the  earth  in  Cascia,  the  body  of 
St.  Rita  elevated  itself  in  the  coffin,  and  to  the  great 
joy  of  the  frightened  people  who  had  sought  the  aid  and 
protection  of  the  saint,  the  earthquake  ceased  without 
doing  any  damage. 

These  and  many  more  miracles,  which  we  could 
mention,  prove  that  God  has  endowed  the  humble 
Augustinian  nun.  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia,  with  a  won- 
derful power  of  obtaining  for  her  clients  every  and  any 
good  thing  they  desire,  and  of  protecting  them  from 
every  danger  of  body  and  soul. 


m 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

The  Solemn  Beatification  of  St.  Rita 

'HEN  Pope  Urban  VIII  was  Bishop  of  Spoleto, 
he  had  numerous  occasions  to  admire  some  of  the 
prodigies  which  took  place  through  the  interces- 
sion of  St.  Rita.  As  Cascia  belonged  to  his  diocese,  he 
visited  the  city,  at  least,  once  a  year,  and  as  he  was  a 
very  devout  client  of  St.  Rita,  he  never  failed  to  go  to 
her  tomb  to  venerate  her  holy  body.  After  he  had  been 
elevated  to  the  papacy,  the  holy  man  did  not  forget  St. 
Rita.  Convinced,  personally,  of  her  sanctity,  he  ordered 
the  cardinals  who  composed  the  Sacred  Congregation 
of  Rites,  to  make  a  thorough  examination  of  the  life  of 
St.  Rita,  with  a  view  to  her  Beatification.  On  the  14th 
of  October,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1626,  the  Holy 
Father  sent  letters  Apostolic  to  Monsignor  Castrucci, 
bishop  of  Spoleto,  instructing  him  to  prepare  the  Pro- 
cess, and  naming  him  Commissary  Judge ;  and  to  Mon- 
signor Colangeli,  pronotary  Apostolic,  who  opened  the 
process  the  19th  day  of  the  same  month.  The  others 
who  were  present  at  the  process  were:  Antonio  Rai- 
mondo  and  Francesco  Venanci  of  Cascia,  as  pronotaries ; 
Father  Venancio  Pamfili,  D.D.,  advocate  and  procu- 
rator for  the  nuns;  Giovanni  Citadini  and  Leonardi 
Gregoretti,  of  Cascia,  as  procurator  deputies  for  the 
city  of  Cascia;  and  Father  Basilio  Simonetti  and  Father 

152 


The  Solemn  Beatification  of  St,  Rita  153 

Giovanni  Battista  di  Domenico,  procurators  for  the  con- 
vent of  St.  Augustine. 

The  nuns,  of  the  convent  of  St.  Rita,  believing  that 
the  time  was  come  when  their  sister  Rita  should  enjoy 
a  worship  approved  by  the  Church,  gave  strength  to 
their  belief,  by  sending  to  the  Holy  Father  one  of  the 
bees  that  lived  in  the  convent  at  Cascia,  a  descendant, 
as  it  were,  of  the  white  bees  which  had  appeared  at  Rita's 
birth,  predicting  not  only  her  sanctity,  but  also  that  this 
sanctity  would  be  made  known  to  the  entire  world  by 
a  pope  who  would  be  known  by  the  bees.  Allusion 
is  here  made  to  the  three  bees  that  are  to  be  seen  on 
the  Coat  of  Arms  of  the  Barbarini  family,  of  which 
Urban  VIII  was  a  descendant.  The  Holy  Father  was 
pleased  with  the  courtesy,  and  blessed  the  bees,  in  the 
person  of  their  little  companion  and  sent  it  back  to 
the  convent  in  Cascia. 

When  the  process  of  the  hfe  of  St.  Rita  was  con- 
cluded and  reviewed  by  the  Sacred  Congregation  of 
Rites,  it  was  the  opinion  of  the  Congregation,  that  the 
virtues  and  miracles  of  the  saint  were  even  greater  than 
what  fame  and  reputation  attributed  to  her.  The  Con- 
gregation therefore  approved  the  finding  of  the  Apos- 
tolic Commission.  Accordingly,  the  Holy  Father  not 
only  approved  the  worship  that  the  saint  had  received 
from  the  time  of  her  death,  but  also  at  the  instance  of 
the  superioress  and  the  nuns  of  the  convent  of  St.  Rita, 
granted,  on  the  2nd  of  October,  in  the  year  1627,  the 
glorious  privilege  to  the  priests  of  the  Augustinian  Or- 
der, in  the  diocese  of  Spoleto,  to  say  Mass  and  recite 
office  in  honor  of  St.  Rita,  and  to  the  nuns  of  the  same 
Order  the  privilege  of  reciting  office  in  honor  of  the 
saint.     On  the  4.th  of  February,  in  the  year  1628,  at 


154»  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

the  instance  of  the  Prior  General  of  the  Order  of  St. 
Augustine,  the  privilege  of  saying  Mass  in  honor  of 
St.  Rita  in  any  Augustinian  church  and  convent  or  in 
any  church  in  the  diocese  of  Spoleto,  on  the  feast  of 
the  saint,  was  extended  to  the  priests  of  the  secular 
clergy.  Ten  months  after  the  Apostolic  approbation  of 
public  worship  in  honor  of  St.  Rita,  the  ceremony  of  her 
solemn  Beatification  took  place,  her  name  was  enrolled 
in  the  catalogue  of  the  Blessed,  and  recorded  in  the  Ro- 
man Martyrology. 

That  the  reader  may  have  an  idea  of  the  ceremonies 
attending  the  Beatification  of  a  servant  of  God,  we  will, 
in  as  few  words  as  possible,  sketch  them.  Though  the 
ceremonies  attending  Beatification  are  not  so  grand  and 
magnificent  as  those  in  connection  with  Canonization, 
still  they  are  not  wanting  in  grandeur  and  solemnity. 

On  the  day  appointed  for  the  Beatification,  the  car- 
dinals who  compose  the  Sacred  Congregation  of  Rites 
assemble  in  the  Vatican.  There  are  also  present  large 
delegations  of  rehgious,  priests  and  nuns.  The  secular 
clergy  is  also  represented,  and  you  must  add  to  these  a 
multitude  of  the  devout  and  pious  laity.  There  is  no 
need  of  decorations  in  the  Vatican  to  add  beauty  to  the 
scene.  Christian  art  is  everywhere  in  evidence  in  the 
Vatican.  The  genius  of  a  Michael  Angelo  and  a 
Raphael  has  already  decorated  the  Vatican.  The  cere- 
monies of  the  Beatification  begin  with  the  reading  of  the 
Apostolic  Brief  declaring  the  servant  of  God  a  Blessed. 
After  the  reading  of  the  Brief,  a  solemn  high  Mass  is 
sung.  The  celebrant  of  the  Mass  is  a  bishop  Consultor 
of  the  Sacred  Congregation  of  Rites.  During  the 
Mass,  at  the  intonation  of  the  "Gloria,"  a  large  picture 
of  the  Blessed,  which  is  on  the  altar  covered  with  a  heavy 


The  Solemn  Beatification  of  St.  It  it  a  155 

veil,  is  uncovered,  and  exposed  to  the  view  of  the  con- 
gregation. The  ceremonies  end  with  the  chanting  of 
the  hymn,  "Holy  God,  we  praise  thy  name." 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

Festitities  Held  at  Rome  and  Cascia  in  Honor  of 

THE  Solemn  Beatification 
01  St.  Rita 

AS  SOON  as  the  Holy  See  had  approved  the  wor- 
ship, of  which,  from  the  time  of  her  death,  St. 
Rita  was  the  object;  and  had  granted  to  the 
priests  of  the  Augustinian  Order,  the  privilege  of  saying 
Mass  and  Office  in  honor  of  St.  Rita,  and  to  the  nuns 
of  the  same  Order  the  privilege  of  the  Office ;  there  were 
held  at  Rome  and  at  Cascia,  solemn  and  festive  cele- 
brations in  honor  of  St.  Rita,  on  the  22nd  day  of  May, 
in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1628.  On  that  ever  memorable 
day,  the  church  of  St.  Augustine  at  Rome  was  dressed 
in  its  best  and  most  magnificent  holiday  attire.  The 
facade  of  the  church  was  decorated  with  the  Papal  colors, 
the  Arms  of  the  Augustinian  Order  and  Papal  Arms 
hung  side  by  side  with  the  Barbarini  Arms,  of  w^hich 
three  bees,  as  we  have  already  observed,  form  a  part. 
The  interior  of  the  church  was  also  decorated  appropri- 
ate to  the  joyful  occasion,  while  the  main  altar  was 
illuminated  with  hundreds  of  lighted  wax  candles.  The 
church  was  crowded  with  devout  people,  for  the  name 
and  the  fame  of  St.  Rita's  sanctity  were  not  unknown  in 
Rome.  A  solemn  high  Mass  was  sung.  During  the 
Mass,  after  the  first  Gospel,  a  sermon,  detailing  the  life 

156 


Festivities  at  Rome  at  Her  Beatification       157 

and  virtues  of  St.  Rita,  was  preached,  and  when  Mass 
was  concluded,  the  choir,  composed  of  priests,  professed 
clerics  and  novices  of  the  monastery  of  St.  Augustine, 
chanted  a  "Te  Deum"  in  thanksgiving  to  God  for  hav- 
ing given  to  the  Church,  and  for  the  greater  honor  and 
glory  of  the  Order  of  St.  Augustine,  so  great  an  orna- 
ment as  the  blessed  nun,  St.  Rita  of  Cascia. 

But  grand  and  solemn  as  was  the  celebration  in 
honor  of  St.  Rita,  at  Rome,  the  celebration,  at  Cascia, 
outstripped  in  solemnity,  grandeur,  and  magnificence 
the  best  efforts  of  Rome.  The  people  of  Cascia, 
prompted  by  their  love  and  devotion  to  St.  Rita,  had 
been  preparing  for  a  long  time  to  honor  her  publicly 
and  in  a  manner  never  to  be  forgotten.  In  fact,  they 
had  begun  preparations  when  the  process  for  her  Beati- 
fication began.  The  expressed  approbation  of  the  Holy 
See  of  St.  Rita's  virtues  and  sanctity  foimd  an  echo  in 
the  heart  of  every  person  in  Cascia,  and  never  was  the 
feast  day  of  a  saint  welcomed  with  more  holy  en- 
thusiasm, than  the  festival  dav  of  St.  Rita. 

The  well-to-do  people  of  Cascia  decorated  the  church 
of  the  nuns,  both  inside  and  outside,  with  rich  bunting 
and  tapestries  of  silk,  and  they  also  had  nineteen  pic- 
tures painted  on  canvas,  each  picture  representing 
some  event  in  the  life  of  the  saint.  Evenings  before 
the  feast  day,  ever}^  house  in  Cascia  was  ablaze  with 
candles  lighting  in  windows,  while  pious  hands  lighted 
bonfires  on  the  peaks  of  the  highest  mountains  and 
hills  in  and  around  Cascia,  inviting,  as  it  were,  with 
tongues  of  fire  all  the  neighboring  peoples,  to  come  and 
join  in  the  festival.  And  at  the  same  time,  every  bell 
in  Cascia,  and  in  the  territory  adjacent  to  Cascia,  rang 
out  a  joyous  and  hearty  invitation  to  come  to  do  honor 
to  St.  Rita. 


158  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

When  the  feast  of  St.  Rita  came,  Cascia  was  crowded 
with  visitors,  who  had  come  from  all  parts  of  Italy  to  be 
present  at  the  celebration.  On  all  sides  could  be  heard 
the  Evviva  Santa  Rita  da  Cascia,  Hail  St,  Rita  of  Cas- 
cia, of  the  young  as  well  as  of  the  old.  Never  before 
or  since  has  Cascia  seen  so  many  clergy,  secular  and 
regular  within  its  walls.  Naturally,  there  were  a  large 
immber  of  Augustinian  priests  and  nuns  present,  for 
they  considered  St.  Rita  their  sister,  by  reason  of  her 
profession;  but  both  secular  and  regular  vied  with  one 
another,  in  their  desires  to  honor  the  humble  Augus- 
tinian nun  whom  God  had  honored  through  His  vice- 
gerent on  earth. 

One  thing,  however,  happened  that  might  have 
marred  all  the  glory  of  the  celebration,  had  not  the 
j)ower  of  St.  Rita  intervened.  On  the  eve  of  the  feast, 
when  the  time  came  to  recite  the  first  vespers  of  the 
Office  of  the  saint,  the  secular  clergy  claimed  the  right 
to  conduct  the  function.  The  Augustinian  priests  dis- 
puted this  right  with  much  vigor.  Even  the  laity  en- 
tered into  the  verbal  strife,  and  for  a  time  it  looked  as 
if  the  disputants  would  come  to  blows. 

The  nuns,  frightened  by  the  commotion  caused  by 
the  quarrel,  implored  God,  through  the  intercession  of 
their  sainted  sister  Rita,  to  pacify  the  disputants,  and 
to  their  great  surprise,  the  body  of  the  saint  raised  itself 
to  the  top  of  the  coffin,  and  opened  its  eyes  which  had 
been  closed  since  the  time  of  the  saint's  death,  a  period 
of  171  years.  Astonished  at  this  prodigy,  the  nuns  rang 
the  convent  bell,  and  in  answer  to  the  call,  thousands 
passed  before  the  body  of  St.  Rita  and  were  eye  wit- 
nesses of  the  prodigy.  By  reason  of  this  miracle,  peace 
was  restored  among  the  disputing  clergy.  The  friars 
ceded  their  right  to  the  secular  clergy,  who  claimed  the 


Festivities  at  Rome  at  Her  Beatification       159 

first  vespers  of  the  saint,  with  great  devotion,  accom- 
panied by  the  sweet  and  melodious  tones  of  the  organ. 

The  next  day,  the  feast  day  of  St.  Rita,  the  parish 
priests  of  the  neighborhood  towns  and  villages,  marched 
into  Cascia  at  the  head  of  their  congregations,  each  mem- 
ber of  the  congregation  carrying  in  his  or  her  hand  a 
wax  candle  ornamented  with  a  piece  of  silver  money, 
as  an  off  €  ring  to  the  saint.  When  all  the  different  con- 
gregations were  assembled,  a  procession  was  formed, 
headed  by  thi^ee  hundred  persons  who  carried  lighted 
wax  torches,  significant  of  the  fire  of  love  and  devotion 
that  was  burning  in  their  hearts  for  St.  Rita.  Many  in 
the  procession  were  dressed  as  penitents  and  many  were 
also  dressed  to  represent  different  saints. 

After  the  procession.  Mass  was  celebrated,  after 
which  second  Vespers  and  Complin  were  chanted.  The 
magnates  of  the  city,  the  mayor  and  his  council  and  the 
aldermen  were  present  and  occupied  seats  in  the  sanc- 
tuary, while  the  church  was  filled  to  overflowing  with 
the  faithful  of  both  sexes,  who  had  come  to  honor  and 
venerate  the  body  of  the  saint.  In  the  afternoon  there 
was  a  representation  of  the  "Penitent  King  David"  in 
a  theatre  built  for  the  occasion  in  the  largest  square  in 
the  city. 

Before  the  festival  day  had  come  to  a  close,  another 
miracle,  for  the  greater  glory  of  God  and  the  greater 
honor  of  St.  Rita,  was  wrought  in  the  presence  of  a 
great  multitude.  A  woman,  who  belonged  to  a  dis- 
tinguished and  influential  family  of  Spoleto,  had  been 
for  many  years,  under  the  power  and  tyranny  of  an  evil 
spirit.  Inspired  with  confidence,  that  through  the  in- 
tercession of  St.  Rita  she  would  obtain  from  God  free- 
dom from  her  tormentor,  she  came  to  Cascia  with  a 
number  of  her  relatives  and  friends.     Forcing  her  way 


160  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

through  the  multitude  that  crowded  the  church,  she  ap- 
proached near  to  the  tomb  of  St.  Rita,  and  after  pray- 
ing for  a  short  time,  she  was  hberated  from  the  evil 
spirit. 

Long  after  the  last  visiting  congregation  had  de- 
parted for  their  homes,  there  could  be  heard  the  distant 
sound  of  their  voices  saying:  Evviva,  Santa  Rita  da 
Cascia.  Though  hundreds  of  years  have  gon  3  by  since 
the  piety  of  the  people  of  Cascia  first  uttered  these 
words,  they  are  still  repeated  today  in  every  land  and 
in  every  clime  wherever  there  is  an  Augustinian  mon- 
astery or  convent.  Evviva  Santa  Rita  da  Cascia — Hail 
St.  Rita  of  Cascia, 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

Miracles  Wrought  by  St.  Rita  After  Her 

Beatification 

^yjJESIDES  the  very  many  miracles  that  St.  Rita 
^|a  wrought  after  her  death,  up  to  the  time  of  her 
^'^  Beatification,  she  also  wrought  many  after  her 
Beatification.  We  will  mention  a  few  of  the  principal 
ones  in  this  chapter. 

Among  the  many  miracles  which  St.  Rita  wrought 
after  her  Beatification,  we  must  not  forget  to  mention 
her  care  in  providing,  on  many  occasions,  for  the  neces- 
sities of  the  nuns  of  her  convent  in  Cascia.  One  day. 
Sister  Costanza,  the  superioress  of  the  convent,  was 
sorely  perplexed  and  troubled,  because  there  was  not 
a  drop  of  wine  in  the  convent,  nor  had  she  the  money 
to  buy  it.  With  all  confidence  she  went  to  the  tomb 
of  St.  Rita,  and  made  known  her  want  to  the  saint. 
A  short  time  afterwards,  the  superioress  heard  a  loud 
knock  at  the  door  of  the  convent.  When  the  door  was, 
opened,  a  man  stood  without  and  said  he  had  a  barrel 
of  wine  for  the  convent.  When  the  wine  was  put  in 
the  cellar,  the  man  disappeared  suddenly,  as  well  as  the 
donkey  and  the  cart  which  had  brought  the  supply  of 
wine. 

On  another  occasion,  the  same  superioress  experi- 
enced the  same  want.     St.  Rita  again  came  to  her  aid. 

161 


162  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

Signora  Petrangeli,  the  esteemed  wife  of  the  treasurer 
of  Cascia,  sent  some  wine  to  the  convent.  In  a  note 
she  informed  the  superioress,  that  for  three  successive 
nights,  while  sleeping,  she  heard  St.  Rita  saying  to  her: 
"Send  some  wine  to  the  convent,  the  nuns  have  none." 

Another  superioress  was  in  urgent  need  of  money  to 
pay  a  bill.  She  invoked  the  aid  of  St.  Rita.  That  very 
day,  the  superioress  found  in  the  almsbox  the  neces- 
sary aid  and  assistance. 

Not  only  has  St.  Rita  aided  the  nuns  of  her  con- 
vent in  their  temporal  affairs,  but  she  has  also  been 
most  solicitous  about  their  spiritual  necessities.  Father 
Gregorio  Anselmi  of  Offida,  who  had  been  the  confessor 
of  the  nuns  of  Cascia  for  ten  years,  and  afterwards  sub- 
prior  of  St.  Augustine's  monastery  in  Rome,  relates, 
that,  on  many  occasions,  when  a  nun  fell  dangerously 
ill,  he  heard  in  his  sleep  a  voice  saying  repeatedly: 
"Father  Confessor!"  Awakened  by  the  voice,  which  he 
believed  to  be  St.  Rita's,  he  would  scarcely  be  dressed, 
when  a  messenger  from  the  convent  would  come,  in  all 
haste,  and  tell  him,  that  one  of  the  nuns  was  dangerously 
ill,  and  was  calling  for  him. 

The  same  priest  relates  that  Sister  Elizabetta,  one 
of  the  nuns,  who  had  been  ill  with  catarrh  for  some  time, 
became  weak,  one  night,  and  called  for  her  confessor. 
Both  the  physician  and  the  superioress,  judging  there 
was  not  the  least  danger  of  death,  were  loath  to  send 
for  him  since  the  hour  was  very  late.  However,  the 
superioress  did  send  word,  but  informed  him  that  the 
call  was  not  urgent,  so  he  did  not  go.  The  next  morn- 
ing, while  saying  JMass,  he  felt  as  if  there  was  a  voice 
telling  him  to  hasten  to  see  the  sick  nun.  After  Mass 
he  went  immediately  to  the  bedside  of  the  patient,  and 
found  her  actually  dying.     Scarcely  had  he  adminis- 


Miracles  Wrought  After  Beatification        163 

tered  the  last  Sacraments,  than  her  soul  departed  for 
heaven  to  receive  its  eternal  reward.  Before  dying, 
Sister  Elizabetta  said  it  was  St.  Kita  who  had  sent  the 
Father  Confessor  to  her  bedside,  so  that  she  would  not 
die  without  the  last  Sacraments. 

In  the  year  1658,  a  few  days  before  the  feast  of  St. 
Rita,  a  woman,  who  happened  to  be  in  the  church, 
noticed  that  the  lamp  before  the  saint's  tomb  was  not 
lighted.  She  hastened,  at  once,  and  informed  the  sister 
sacristan,  who  could  scarcely  believe  what  the  woman 
said,  since  she  herself  had  lighted  the  lamp  at  early 
morn.  Going  to  the  tomb,  she  found  to  her  great  sur- 
prise, that  the  taper  in  the  lamp  was  extinguished.  She 
then  went  to  the  sacristy  to  get  a  Hghter,  but  on  return- 
ing, to  her  greater  surprise,  she  found  the  lamp  had  been 
lighted  without  the  intervention  of  human  hands.  This 
fact  was  authenticated  before  Giuseppe  Benatti,  notary 
public,  the  16th  of  July,  in  the  year  1660. 

Filippo  Antonio  Gregoretti,  a  native  of  Macerata, 
was  at  the  point  of  death,  by  reason  of  a  malady  that 
had  afRicted  him  for  many  years.  Full  of  confidence  in 
the  intercession  of  St.  Rita,  he  asked  her  to  ask  God  to 
cure  him.  His  recourse  to  St.  Rita  was  not  in  vain, 
he  was  restored  to  health.  Filippo  himself  wrote  to  the 
superioress  of  the  convent  of  Cascia,  on  the  10th  of 
May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1661,  and  informed  her 
of  the  miraculous  cure  he  had  obtained  through  the  in- 
tercession of  St.  Rita. 

And  finally,  among  the  many  more  wonders  that 
God  wrought,  through  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita  we 
will  make  mention  of  the  following.  There  lived  in 
the  city  of  Gublio,  in  the  province  of  Umbria,  a  gentle- 
man named  Persio  Piasi  and  his  wife  Cecilia.     Both 


164)  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

were  of  distinguished  and  illustrious  families,  the  pos- 
sessors of  much  wealth,  and  better  than  all,  they  were 
pious  and  devout  Christians.  They  had  lived  together 
happily  for  eighteen  years,  but  God  had  not  blessed 
their  union  with  any  children.  As  they  both  desired 
an  heir  to  their  name  and  wealth,  they  had  recourse  to 
the  intercession  of  St.  Rita  and  were  consoled.  A  beau- 
tiful son  was  born  to  them,  and  one  of  the  names  they 
gave  him  was  Rita,  for  they  considered  their  little  son 
as  the  fruit  of  the  intercession  of  St.  Rita. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

The  Rapid  Spread  of  Devotion  to  St.  Rita 

^fJ^ONG  before  the  time  of  her  solemn  Beatification, 
V\  devotion  to  St.  Rita  of  Cascia  had  begun.  At 
^^  first,  in  the  province  of  Umbria;  thence  it  spread 
to  every  province  in  Italy,  and  then  flew,  as  it  were, 
on  the  wings  of  love  across  the  Mediterranean  Sea  and 
planted  itself  in  the  kingdom  of  Spain.  After  her 
Beatification,  however,  so  rapid  was  the  propagation  of 
the  devotion,  that  in  every  part  of  Europe  wherever 
there  was  an  Augustinian  Church,  monastery  or  con- 
vent, there  also  could  be  found  an  altar  or  shrine  dedi- 
cated to  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia. 

Devotion  to  St.  Rita  did  not  long  confine  itself  ex- 
clusively to  Europe.  In  the  course  of  time,  zealous  and 
devout  Augustinian  missionaries  brought  the  devotion 
across  the  broad  Atlantic  ocean,  and  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore the  peoples  of  Spanish  America  vied  in  their  devo- 
tion to  St.  Rita,  not  only  with  their  kindred  in  the 
mother  country,  but  also  with  their  brethren  in  Italy. 

From  the  annals  of  the  Order  of  St.  Augustine  we 
learn,  that  when  Father  Diego  de  los  Rios  was  elected 
provincial  of  the  Province  of  the  Holy  Name  of  Jesus 
in  Mexico,  on  the  6th  day  of  May,  in  the  year  1645,  one 
of  the  first  things  he  did  was  to  introduce,  with  great 
fervor  and  zeal,  devotion  to  St.  Rita  in  the  City  of 

165 


166  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

Mexico.  Time  has  added  new  zeal  to  this  devotion,  for 
even  to  this  day  the  faithful  of  Mexi<io  City,  in  spite 
of  all  the  machinations  of  secret  societies  to  root  up  and 
destroy  their  faith,  so  love  and  venerate  the  memory  of 
the  holy  Augustinian  nun,  that  they  consider  her  their 
patron  and  advocate.  Another  proof  the  love  of  the 
Mexicans  for  our  saint,  is  that  the  majority  of  their 
little  daughters  receive,  at  baptism,  the  name  of  Rita. 

Devotion  to  St.  Rita  took  root  and  flourished  also  in 
Flascala.  Flascala  was  before  its  conversion  to 
Christianity,  a  most  powerful  republic.  Today  it  is  a 
"privileged  city"  of  Indians,  in  reward  for  the  valor  of 
their  ancestors  who  were  faithful  allies  of  the  Spaniards 
in  the  conquest  of  Mexico.  In  the  parish  church  of 
Flascala,  there  is  a  magnificent  altar,  surrounded  by  a 
forest  of  elegant  columns,  with  plinths  and  capitals  of 
burnished  gold  dedicated  to  St.  Rita.  Every  year  her 
feast  day  is  celebrated  with  much  pomp  and  solemnity. 

A  special  mention  must  be  made  of  the  piety  and 
liberality  of  the  clients  of  St.  Rita  who  builded  a  beauti- 
ful cathedral  in  her  honor  in  the  city,  formerly  called 
San  Sebastian,  now  Rio  Janeiro.  This  cathedral  en- 
joys many  privileges  granted  by  a  decree  of  Pope  Bene- 
dict XIII,  dated  the  17th  day  of  September,  in  the  year 
of  our  Lord  1724. 

Thus  we  see  that  the  devotion  to  St.  Rita,  w^hich  had 
its  beginning  in  Cascia,  the  very  day  of  the  saint's  death, 
soon  spread  over  Europe,  and  carried,  so  to  speak,  by 
the  winds  that  roam  the  broad  Atlantic,  found  a  home 
in  the  pious  hearts  of  the  faithful  of  South  America. 

Like  the  people  of  Italy,  the  people  of  Spain  ven- 
erated St.  Rita  as  a  saint,  long  before  she  was  Beati- 
fied ;  and  so  many  and  so  great  were  the  favors  they  re- 
ceived from  God  through  the  intercession  of  the  saint, 


The  Rapid  Spread  of  Devotion  to  St.  Rita      167 

that  the  faithful  of  Spain  were  the  first  to  call  St. 
Rita:  Advocate  of  the  Impossible.  In  fact,  it  was  the 
pious  people  of  Valencia,  where  that  grand  ornament 
of  the  Catholic  Church,  our  own  St.  Thomas  of  Villa- 
nova,  ruled  as  bishop  for  many  years,  who  gave  this  title 
to  our  saint.  To  the  people  of  Cadiz,  however,  belongs 
the  honor  of  calling  St.  Rita:  Saint  of  impossible 
things;  and  it  is  by  this  title  that  St.  Rita,  the  humble 
Augustinian  nun  of  Cascia,  is  universally  known. 

That  Sister  St.  Rita  merits  the  title  of  Saint  of  the 
Impossible  there  can  be  no  doubt.  A  retrospect  of  her 
life  and  the  prodigies  she  wi^ought  after  her  death  will 
emphasize  her  undoubted  right  to  the  title. 

She  was  born  when  her  parents  had  reached  that  age 
which  excludes  all  hope  of  offspring,  unless  by  a  singu- 
lar favor  from  Gk>d. 

A  swarm  of  white  bees  humming  and  buzzing  around 
her  cradle,  entering  and  issuing  forth  from  her  tiny 
mouth,  predicted  that  sweetness  of  disposition,  speech, 
and  manners,  which  was  to  be  one  of  the  striking  char- 
acteristics of  her  life. 

As  a  maiden  she  was  a  mirror  of  innocence  and 
purity — a  lily  among  thorns.  Her  married  life  was  sig- 
nalized, not  only  by  converting  a  wayward  and  iras- 
cible husband  into  a  docile  and  loving  companion,  but 
also  by  a  conjugal  chastity  that  was  wonderful. 

Her  marvellous  entrance  into  the  convent,  though 
the  doors  were  securely  locked  and  the  windows  barred. 
Her  wonderful  patience  in  suffering  for  fifteen  years 
the  pains  of  the  wound,  on  her  forehead,  caused  by  the 
sacred  thorn. 

Though  she  lived  to  a  ripe  age,  she  ate  little,  and 
punished  her  body  with  a  rigorous  and  continual 
penance.     She  caused  flowers  and  fruits  to  bloom  and 


168  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

grow  in  the  midst  of  the  snow  and  ice  of  an  inclement 
winter.  After  death,  she  raised  her  body  to  the  top 
of  the  coffin,  and  opened  her  eyes  as  if  she  were  living 
and  not  dead. 

Finally,  the  numberless  miracles  wrought  through 
her  intercession,  in  favor  of  those  who  had  recourse  to 
her  in  their  difficulties  and  afflictions  when  all  human 
aid  failed  them,  tell  us  plainly  that  Sister  St.  Rita  of 
Cascia  merits  the  title :     Saint  of  Impossible  things. 

How  graphically  is  not  the  life  of  St.  Rita  crystalized 
in  that  beautiful  hymn,  which  the  Augustinian  friars  and 
nuns  recite,  at  office,  each  year  in  honor  of  St.  Rita  on 
her  feast  day.  May  22nd: 

Come,  virgins  chaste,  pure  brides,  draw  near : 
Let  each  exult  and  Heaven  hear 
The  hymn  which  grateful  accents  raise. 
Our  song  of  joy  in  Rita's  praise. 

By  fast  her  sinless  frame  is  weak; 
Her  livid  flesh  the  scourges  streak. 
In  pity  for  her  Savior's  woes. 
Her  days  and  even  nights  are  closed. 
The  thorn-wound  on  her  brow  is  shown, 
The  crimson  rose  in  winter  blown, 
And  full-ripe  figs  in  frozen  tree 
At  Rita's  wish  the  wonderers  see. 
The  widowed  spouse  and  wedded  wife 
The  way  to  Heaven  see  in  her  life ; 
The  way  secure  our  Rita  trod, 
In  life's  dim  day,  through  pain  to  God. 
Praise  to  the  Father  and  the  Son, 
Praise  to  the  Spirit,  Three  in  One; 
O  grant  us  grace  in  Heaven  to  reign 
Through  Rita's  prayer  and  hf  e-long  pain. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

The  Solemn  Canonization  of  St.  Rita 

'J^HE  UNIVERSAL  and  uninterrupted  devotion  of 
ilL  the  faithful  to  St.  Rita,  and  the  very  many  won- 
^^  derful  prodigies  that  God  wrought  through  her 
intercession,  enkindled,  in  the  loving  hearts  of  thousands 
and  thousands  of  the  clients  of  the  humble  Augustinian 
nun,  the  ardent  desire  of  seeing  her  elevated  to  that 
highest  honor,  with  which  Holy  Mother  Church  recom- 
penses the  heroic  virtues  of  her  pious  and  devout  cliil- 
dren.  This  ardent  desire  began  to  manifest  itself 
shortly  after  her  Beatification.  However,  generation 
after  generation  of  the  devout  clients  of  St.  Rita  went 
to  their  reward,  without  seeing  the  realization  of  their 
wishes.  But  at  length  the  happy  time  came  after  a 
lapse  of  two  centuries  of  years  and  more.  The  year 
1900  will  long  be  remembered  by  the  friars  and  nuns 
of  the  Order  of  St.  Augustine,  as  well  as  by  the  loving 
and  devout  clients  of  St.  Rita.  In  this  year,  on  the 
24th  of  May,  Pope  Leo  XII,  of  happy  memory,  de- 
creed that  Blessed  Rita,  O.  S.  A.,  of  Cascia  should  be 
honored  as  a  saint,  in  public  and  in  private;  that  her 
name  be  inscribed  in  the  catalogue  of  the  saints,  and 
that  her  memory  should  be  held  in  perpetual  veneration 
on  the  22nd  day  of  May  each  year  by  the  Universal 
Church. 

169 


170  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

We  will  mention  some  of  the  details  that  anteceded 
the  Canonization  of  St.  Rita.  In  the  year  1737,  a  few 
years  more  than  a  century  after  her  Beatification,  the 
Apostolic  Process  of  the  virtues  and  particularly  of  the 
miracles  of  St.  Rita  was  begun.  This  Process  was  con- 
ducted by  the  diocesan  tribunals  of  Spoleto  and  Nur- 
sia.  For  different  reasons,  some  particular,  some  gen- 
eral, the  Process  was  delayed  for  more  than  a  century. 
On  the  9th  of  September,  in  the  year  1851,  letters  were 
sent  from  Rome  to  the  bishop  of  Nursia  to  reopen  and 
complete  the  Process.  The  procedure  lasted  four  years. 
In  1855  the  Process  was  sent  to  Rome,  approved  the 
following  year  by  the  Sacred  Congregation  of  Rites, 
and  confirmed  by  a  decree  of  Pope  Pius  IX,  the  29th 
of  May,  in  the  year  1856.  On  June  8th,  in  the  year  of 
our  Lord  1896,  the  Sacred  Congregation  approved  the 
Process  made  in  the  year  1626  of  the  sanctity,  virtues, 
and  worship  to  the  saint,  thereby  giving  it  the  value  of 
an  Apostolic  Process.  On  April  6th,  in  the  year  1897, 
the  same  Congregation  approved  the  Process  of  the  vir- 
tues of  St.  Rita,  and  declared  that  steps  could  be  taken, 
at  once,  to  examine  the  miracles  attributed  to  the  saint. 
After  a  long  and  careful  examination,  as  the  Church  is 
accustomed  to  do  in  such  cases.  Pope  Leo  XIII,  by  a 
decree  dated  Palm  Sunday,  April  8th,  in  the  year  1900, 
approved,  among  the  many,  the  miracles  attributed  to 
St.  Rita,  and  declared  that  they  could,  with  all  securitj^ 
proceed  to  the  solemn  Canonization  of  the  saint.  The 
following  were  the  three  miracles  that  were  approved, 
as  we  may  learn  from  the  Decree  of  St.  Rita's  Canoni- 
zation. 

"The  first  miracle  consists  of  that  pleasing  scent 
emanating  from  the  remains  of  the  Saint's  body,  the 
existence  of  which  is  confirmed  by  many  reliable  wit- 


TJie  Solemn  Canonization  of  St,  Rita  171 

nesses  and  trustworthy  tradition,  so  that  to  doubt  con- 
cerning this  fact  would  be  absurd ;  moreover  no  natm^al 
cause  can  be  given  for  the  existence  of  this  odor,  as  we 
see  from  the  physical  research  which  has  been  made  by 
men  most  skilled  in  such  things.  Furthermore  this  odor 
diffuses  itself  in  a  manner  above  the  usual  laws  of  na- 
ture. Hence  we  should  be  persuaded  that  this  fra- 
grance has  its  origin  through  divine  intervention." 

"The  other  miracle  happened  to  Elizabeth  Bergam- 
ini,  a  young  girl  in  danger  of  losing  her  sight  from  small- 
pox. Her  parents,  assured  by  the  physicians  that  the 
child's  condition  was  so  serious  that  medical  aid  could 
be  of  no  avail,  decided  to  send  her  to  the  Augustinian 
Convent  at  Cascia,  beseeching  St.  Rita  fervently  to  de- 
liver their  daughter  from  approaching  blindness.  ^  Ar- 
riving at  the  convent,  the  child  was  clothed  with  a 
votive  dress  in  honor  of  St.  Rita.  After  four  months 
Ehzabeth  cried  out  one  day  that  she  could  see.  To- 
gether with  the  nuns  she  immediately  began  to  give 
thanks  to  God  who  had  wrought  such  a  miracle  through 
St.  Rita." 

"The  third  miracle  happened  to  Cosimo  PelligTini, 
suffering  from  chronic  catarrhal  gastro-enteritis  and 
hemorrhoidal  affection  so  serious  that  there  was  no  hope 
of  recovery.  Returning  one  day  from  church  he  be- 
came so  weak  from  a  new  attack  of  his  excruciating 
malady,  that  he  was  near  death.  Doctors,  being  sum- 
moned, ordered  him  to  receive  the  last  Sacraments,  re- 
ceiving which  he  lay  in  the  bed  with  every  appearance 
of  approaching  death,  when  suddenly  he  seemed  to  see 
St.  Rita  in  the  attitude  of  greeting  him.  Thereupon  his 
former  strength  and  appetite  returned  to  him,  and 
within  a  very  short  time  he  was  able  to  do  the  work  of 


172  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

a  young  man,  although  he  was  advanced  in  years,  being 
a  septuagenarian." 

In  consideration  of  the  approval  of  the  virtues  and 
miracles  of  the  humble  Augustinian  nun,  Pope  Leo 
XIII  issued  the  Decree  of  Canonization,  and  appointed 
Ascension  Day,  May  24th,  1900,  for  the  happy  event. 
On  this  memorable  day,  two  blessed  servants  of  God 
were  canonized.  Blessed  John  Baptist  de  La  Salle, 
Founder  of  the  Brothers  of  the  Christian  Schools,  and 
our  own  Blessed  Rita  of  Cascia,  known  throughout  the 
entire  Catholic  world  as  the  Saint  of  the  Impossible. 

On  that  occasion  there  was  present  a  large  multi- 
tude of  people.  Pilgrims  had  come  from  Ireland,  Eng- 
land, France,  Germany,  Spain,  America  and  from 
every  province  in  Italy  to  witness  the  rarest  and  most 
solemn  ceremonies  of  Holy  Church.  In  preparation 
for  the  canonization,  more  than  1500  persons  were  em- 
ployed under  the  direction  of  Constantine  Sneider,  who 
had  charge  of  the  decorations  of  the  Vatican.  It  was 
on  this  occasion,  that  electric  light  was  used  for  the 
first  time  in  St.  Peter's  Church.  Nearly  11,000,000  feet 
of  wire  supplied  the  current  for  12,000  lamps  and  400 
chandeliers. 

At  an  early  hour  of  the  morning  of  May  24th,  1900, 
there  was  assembled  in  the  plaza  of  St.  Peter  an  im- 
mense multitude  of  people  of  every  nationality  and 
language,  indicating  that  the  entire  world  was  repre- 
sented. The  front  of  St.  Peter's  Church  stood  forth  in 
all  its  majestic  beauty,  enhanced  by  the  splendor  of 
its  gorgeous  and  magnificent  decorations. 

In  the  meantime,  there  were  assembled  in  the  Vati- 
can Palace  awaiting  the  beginning  of  the  ceremonies: 
the  Sacred  College  of  Cardinals;  Patriarchs;  Arch- 
bishops and  Bishops;  Regular   Clergy:  the   Chapter 


The  Solemn  Canonization  of  St,  Rita         173 

Fathers  of  Bascilicas  and  Colleges ;  the  Parish  priests  of 
Rome;  and  by  special  privilege,  the  students  of  the  Ro- 
man and  French  seminaries. 

At  precisely  eight  o'clock,  His  Sanctity,  accom- 
panied by  his  Com^t  of  Nobles,  proceeded  to  the  Sistine 
Chapel,  where  the  College  of  Cardinals,  the  Archbishops 
and  Bishops  and  all  those  who- were  to  take  part  in  the 
pontifical  function  were  awaiting  his  arrival.  After 
the  hymn  Ave  Marie  Stella  was  chanted,  the  Holy 
Father  knelt  for  a  few  moments  in  prayer,  and  then 
ascended  the  Chair  of  State— Sedia  Gestatoria— to  ac- 
company the  procession  to  the  Basilica  of  St.  Peter.  The 
procession  was  composed  of  three  divisions.  The  first 
division  had  in  its  ranks  the  Regular  Clergy.  Among 
others  Caked  and  Discalced  Augustinians ;  Brothers  of 
the  Christian  Schools ;  Cophuchins ;  Carmelites ;  Domini- 
cans, Benedictines,  and  Canons  of  St.  Jolm  Lateran. 
The  second  division  was  made  up  of  Secular  Clergy: 
The  Parish-priests  of  Rome;  Canons  of  the  Basilicas 
and  Collegiate  Churches  of  Rome;  Officials,  Priests  and 
Prelates  and  Consultors  of  the  Sacred  Congregation  of 
Rites.  The  third  division  was  composed  of  the  Pon- 
tifical Court;  the  Chaplains  and  Chamberlains;  Pro- 
curator Generals  of  Religious  Orders ;  Auditors  and  Re- 
lators of  the  Roman  Rota;  Archbishops,  Bishops  and 
Cardinals.  The  Holy  Father,  Borne  on  the  Chair  of 
State,  followed,  surrounded  by  the  Commanders  and 
Chiefs  of  the  Noble  Guards;  the  Swiss  Guards;  the 
Palatines  and  the  Prior  Generals  of  Religious  Orders. 
It  was  half  past  ten  o'clock  when  the  Holy  Father  ar- 
rived in  St.  Peter's  Church  and  the  ceremonies  of  Can- 
onization began.  The  Decree  of  Canonization  setting 
forth  the  apostolic  sentence,  was  read.  High  INIass  was 
sung  by  Cardinal  Oregha,  Dean  of  the  Sacred  College. 


174  Life  of  Sister  St.  Rita  of  Cascia 

The  music  was  under  the  direction  of  Maestro  Mustafa, 
Director  of  the  Sistine  Choir.  When  the  Mass  was  con- 
cluded, the  Holy  Father  gave  the  Papal  Benediction, 
and  then  retired  to  his  room  in  the  Vatican  Palace  amid 
loud  huzzahs  of  love  and  affection,  as  the  people  re- 
peated again  and  again;  "Long  live  Leo  XIII." 
Rome  was  then,  as  it  is  today,  under  the  rule  and  in 
the  hands  of  a  descendant  of  a  robber  king,  but  the 
ceremonies  which  had  just  terminated  proved  that  Rome 
was  still,  as  it  is  today,  the  City  of  Popes,  and  the 
Metropolitan  of  triumphant  Catholicity, 


m 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Conclusion 

'E  HAVE  observed,  that  ardent  and  fervent  de- 
votion to  St.  Rita  of  Caseia  has  flourished  in 
Europe  and  Spanish  America  for  hundreds  of 
years.  In  less  than  a  dozen  years  this  devotion  has 
taken  so  deep  a  root  in  the  hearts  of  the  faithful  of 
North  America,  that  devout  clients  of  St.  Rita  are  to 
be  found  in  every  large  city  of  the  United  States.  In 
the  East,  there  are  shrines  erected  in  honor  of  St.  Rita 
in  New  York,  Brooklyn,  Albany,  Buffalo,  Philadel- 
phia, Boston,  Worcester  and  Lawrence.  In  the  West, 
St.  Rita  has  shrines  in  Dallas,  Denver  and  in  our  o^vn 
city  of  Chicago. 

Devotion  to  St.  Rita  was  introduced  to  the  faithful 
of  Chicago  by  Very  Rev.  J.  F.  Green,  O.  S.  A.,  Rector 
of  St.  Rita's  church,  located  at  the  corner  of  63rd  street 
and  Oakley  avenue.  In  the  church  is  an  humble  shrine 
of  the  saint,  and  the  large  concourse  of  people  who 
visit  the  shrine  every  Thursday,  accentuates  the  fact, 
that  St.  Rita  of  Caseia,  the  humble  Augustinian  nun, 
is  loved  and  venerated  by  thousands  and  thousands  of 
the  faithful  who  come  from  all  parts  of  Chicago  to  in- 
voke the  intercession  of  the  Saint  of  the  Impossible  and 
to  kiss  her  relic. 

During  the  Noyena  to  ;St..  Rita  which  begins  each 
year  on  the  13th  day.(>f,  MsivOTd/concludes  May  22nd, 

175 


* «  •  *  • 


ittf«««»   •*     • 


^    1      »»      *»       »» 


176  Life  of  Sister  St,  Rita  of  Cascia 

the  feast  day  of  the  saint,  so  great  is  the  multitude  of 
people  that  attend  the  devotions,  which  begin  at  early- 
morn  and  continue  till  late  in  the  evening,  that  one 
would  imagine  he  was  at  Lourdes,  France,  or  at  the 
shrine  of  the  Mother  of  Good  Counsel  at  Benazzano, 
Italy,  or  at  Compostela,  in  Spain.  Father  Green  is 
in  receipt  of  a  score  of  letters  every  week,  testifying  to 
the  many  favors  and  graces  obtained  through  the  inter- 
cession of  St.  Rita. 

We  will  now  conclude  the  storj^  of  the  life  of  Sister 
St.  Rita  by  quoting  the  tenor  of  the  concluding  words 
of  the  Decree  of  Canonization : 

The  solemn  honors  that  Holy  Mother  Church  con- 
fers on  her  saints  should  fill,  with  supreme  joy,  the 
hearts  of  the  faithful,  and  move  them  efficaciously  to  the 
imitation  of  those  virtues  which  made  the  Saints  beauti- 
ful and  pleasing  to  Jesus  Christ,  the  King  of  saints. 
St.  Rita  of  Cascia,  as  maid,  wife,  mother,  and  nun,  was 
so  pleasing  and  so  beloved  by  Jesus  Christ,  that  He 
deigned  to  signalize  her,  not  only  with  the  seal  of  His 
love,  but  especially  with  the  seal  of  His  Passion.  St.  Rita 
merited  this  great  privilege  on  account  of  her  singular 
humility,  her  entire  detachment  from  the  things  of  earth, 
and  by  an  admirable  penance  during  the  different  stages 
of  her  wonderful  life.  However,  the  virtues  which 
made  St.  Rita  particularly  pleasing  to  God  were  her 
love  for  her  neighbor  and  her  affection  and  devotion  to 
Jesus  Christ  crucified.  The  two  virtues  contain  all  the 
wisdom  of  Christianity.  St.  Rita  recommends  us  to 
practice  these  two  virtues.  Let  us,  therefore,  invoke 
her  as  our  intercessor,  so  that  bv  the  constant  exercise 
of  these  two  virtues,  which  go  hand  in  hand,  we  may  be 
able  to  preserve  with  honors !  both  the  sanctity  and  the 
dignity  of  the  glorious  nkme  of  Christians. 


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